NHL 21 Cover Athlete Predictions: Five Players Who Could Be the Cover Star
With hockey on hiatus right now, we thought it’d be interesting to consider who will be new NHL cover star. For the current NHL 20 game, the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews holds that spot. He was having a respectable season as of this report. Matthews tallied 47 goals and 33 assists for the Leafs through 70 games. With that said, it’s time to decide who might replace him as the cover star. Here’s five NHL 21 cover athlete predictions.
NHL 21 cover athlete predictions: Top picks
Leon Draisatl – Could the NHL 21 cover feature the second Edmonton Oilers player in the past four seasons? Young star Connor McDavid graced the cover of NHL 18. In the latest season, Leon Draisatl was the odds-on-favorite to collect the 2020 Hart Trophy. That’s thanks to his league-leading 71 points (43 goals and 67 assists), per NHL stats. It wouldn’t be surprising to see yet another Oilers star claim the front of the EA hockey game.
David Pastrnak – The Boston Bruins star was tied with Washington’s Alex Ovechkin for the most goals scored in the league with 48. However, Pastrnak also tallied 47 assists for a whopping 95 points in the latest season. That trails only our top choice for the NHL 21 cover star. Pastrnak, who was the 2020 All-Star Game MVP, would become the first Bruins player on the cover of the game since NHL 15 with Patrice Bergeron.
Three other possibilities for the cover star
Artemi Panarin – Popularity helps sell video games and the New York Rangers’ Panari seems to have it. A scan of some of the tweet replies involving EA’s NHL content over the past season tend to praise Panarin or chastise EA for not including him in a hot new promotion. The Rangers left wing is also tied with Pastrnak in terms of points with 95 thanks to 32 goals and 63 assists.
Nathan MacKinnon – The Colorado Avalanche center racked up 38 goals and 58 assists in 69 games this season. For the 2020 NHL All-Star Game, the fans voted him as the captain of his respective team for the second-straight year. MacKinnon, a former No. 1 pick back in 2013, has blossomed during his time in the league but never appeared on the EA game cover. NHL 21 may be his time to shine for the video game.
Tuuka Rask – We’ve already mentioned his teammate as an offensive threat. However, Rask has been amongst top goalies in the league for a team on pace to win another Stanley Cup. He recorded 26 wins out of 41 games played and has the league’s best goals allowed on average of 2.12 per game.
If not Rask and it ends up being a goalie, Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy or Philly’s Carter Harter are contenders. If it is a goaltender, it would mark the first time one appeared on the cover since NHL 14’s Martin Brodeur.
Visit our NHL news page for more of the latest game updates.