… All-Star Center Pitted Against New York Islanders Forward John Tavares in Quarterfinals of Online Vote; Fans Able to Cast Ballots Starting Today…
Detroit, MI… In addition to currently competing for Team Russia at the 2012 IIHF World Championships in Europe, Detroit Red Wings forward Pavel Datsyuk is also set to take part in a weeklong battle against fellow NHL All-Star John Tavares for the right to advance to the semifinals in EA Sports’ NHL 13 Cover Vote Challenge. Online voting for this round began earlier today at http://covervote.nhl.com and will end at 11:59 p.m. on May 23.
Datsyuk defeated St. Louis Blues forward T.J. Oshie in the last round of voting and will face either New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist or Nashville Predators netminder Pekka Rinne should he defeat Tavares. A final champion will be determined during the week of May 29-June 4 when the two remaining candidates go head-to-head.
If Datsyuk is victorious in the Cover Vote Challenge he would become the first Red Wing to adorn the cover of EA Sports’ long-running NHL franchise since Steve Yzerman earned the distinction in 1996. He would also join Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander (MLB 2K12) and Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson (Madden 2013) as Detroit-based athletes to be featured on the covers of high-profile video game titles this year, giving sports fans in the Motor City a unique ‘hat trick’ of sorts and marking the first time in history that three major league athletes from the same city have appeared on the cover of a video game at the same time.
Fans who register online can vote as often as they like, with their first 10 ballots cast on any given day earning an entry in the Cover Vote Sweepstakes for a chance to win a VIP trip to the 2012 NHL Awards in Las Vegas. Twitter users are invited to use the hash tag #NHL13Cover when championing their favorite players’ candidacy throughout the duration of this campaign.
