New Legends Join Roster for NHL 13

In NHL 12, we introduced legends into the EA SPORTS NHL Franchise and a brand-new mode called ‘Be a Legend’. It became an exciting way to connect with hockey history and allows fans to play as some of their all-time favorites.

This year, we’re adding new Legends into the mix and are excited to introduce NHL Hall of Famers Doug Gilmour, Jari Kurri, and NHL legend Dominik Hasek to the roster of legends. Accompanying those players will be four-time Olympic Medalists Angela Ruggiero and Hayley Wickenheiser who become the first ever women’s hockey superstars added as playable characters in the EA SPORTS NHL Franchise.

The new NHL 13 legends will join a core group from last year that includes Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Jeremy Roenick in an effort to keep the Legends roster fresh and interesting.

Women’s Hockey Legends in NHL 13

With the release of NHL 12 we added generic female characters in our Be a Pro mode based on a request from a 14-yr old female fan who emailed our team because she felt underrepresented as a hockey videogame fan.

This year we are very excited to continue our effort of creating a more representative experience for female hockey fans by adding two of the greatest female athletes to ever play the game in Wickenheiser and Ruggiero to NHL 13.

We recently spoke to Hayley and she was excited about the opportunity to be a legend in NHL 13:

“The EA SPORTS NHL franchise took a big step last year by including female characters to create a more inclusive experience for female hockey fans,” said Hayley Wickenheiser. “I’m excited to be a part of NHL 13 and hope that the addition of women’s hockey legends will encourage greater participation in hockey from young women everywhere.”

Legends Integration in NHL 13

Legends in NHL 13 will be integrated across several modes:

· Be A Legend– gamers will experience the glory of playing their entire Be A Pro career as a legend as they attempt to shatter the most impressive records in hockey, achieve legendary milestones and complete legends tasks.

· Legends teams– Play as the legends team, Team Ruggiero or Team Wickenheiser, which are comprised of Legends and current NHL greats in head-to-head play – within Play Now, Online and Battle for the Cup modes. Players on Team Ruggiero and Team Wickenheiser were selected by each athlete, respectively.

· Hockey Ultimate Team & Be a GM –Gamers will have the ability to add legends to any team roster in Be a GM mode, or collect ultra-rare legends cards and use them within their Hockey Ultimate Team experience.