2019-06-20 13:51:11 Read the

NHL 20 will launch worldwide on September 13, 2019 on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews has been selected as the NHL 20 cover athlete. The official unveiling took place in Las Vegas at the NHL Awards show on Wednesday night. Matthews expressed his gratitude and appreciation for the honor.

“Growing up I always admired all the players who got to be on the cover of the game. This is a very cool honor and I am proud to represent my organization,” said Matthews. “I’m also really competitive, so now I can’t wait to fire up NHL 20 in the locker room and play against my teammates.”









Matthews succeeds last year's cover athlete P.K. Subban. Matthews is the first member of the Maple Leafs to be honored as the NHL cover athlete. Along with the cover athlete announcement, EA also revealed the first details about the new game.









The latest layers of EA's Real Player Motion technology introduces Signature Shots for the league's top stars. Subban's slapshot, Matthews' half toe-drag wrist shot and Alex Ovechkin's one-timer are all mentioned in the first literature on the game.



There are hundreds of new shot animations, and RPM also addressed passing and puck pick-ups with the objective of creating a faster and smoother play experience. Aside from animations, goaltender A.I. was another area of focus. There is a new offensive threat analysis that is designed to enable goalies to read and react to the threat level of every zone entry. If implemented properly, goalies should be smarter with their commitments.



On the feature side, this year's game will introduce a new way to play ONES and THREES, and it's called Eliminator. It's a winner-take-all competition that introduces the popular battle royale concept. In Eliminator, 81 players compete against each other in a survival tournament bracket. The same concept applies to the THREES version of Eliminator.







The countdown to NHL® 20 starts now!



Pre-order* now for some great content to give yourself a head-start in our most popular modes Hockey Ultimate Team™ and World of CHEL, plus get three days early access with the Ultimate and Deluxe Editions of NHL 20!



Here's what's included in each Pre-Order edition of NHL 20.



NHL® 20 Ultimate Edition:







PRE-ORDER the NHL 20 Ultimate Edition and receive:

Cover Athlete Choice Pack (85 OVR)

Early pre-order bonus available until July 18th

Up to 3 Days Early Access

Up to 10 HUT Diamond Choice Packs (Pack available through pre-order offers only)

Hometown Choice Pack (Choice of 1 hero item, increases +1 OVR each month until April 2020)

5 World of CHEL hockey bags

Access to exclusive HUT Competitive Season (Starts September 13th)



NHL® 20 Deluxe Edition:







PRE-ORDER the NHL 20 Deluxe Edition and receive:

Up to 3 Days Early Access

Up to 5 HUT Diamond Choice Packs (Pack available through pre-order offers only)

Hometown Choice Pack (Choice of 1 hero item, increases +1 OVR each month until April 2020)

2 World of CHEL hockey bags



NHL® 20 Standard Edition:







PRE-ORDER the NHL 20 Standard Edition and receive:

Up to 2 HUT Diamond Choice Packs (Pack available through pre-order offers only)

1 World of CHEL hockey bag

