Honestly the way the 2008-09 NHL season went, there were probably a dozen different players who could have been a safe bet to be on the cover of the upcoming NHL 10. There’s often very little reason not to include Evgeni Malkin, Alexander Ovechkin, and Sidney Crosby who finished 1, 2, 3 respectively in scoring this year. Players like Zach Parise, Ryan Getzlaf, and Marc Savard cemented there positions among the elite in the NHL by having stellar years also. On the goaltending front Tim Thomas was probably the story of the year having struggled for so long to make it into the NHL, he led the Boston Bruins to 1st place in the Eastern Conference with 36 wins helping him win the Vezina Trophy as best goaltender in the process. In Columbus, Steve Mason took over the reigns as starting goaltender going 33-20-7 with a Goals Against Average of 2.29 and a Save Percentage of .916 to win the Calder Memorial Trophy for rookie of the year.
Above all these players and more, EA Sports selected Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks to stand as the cover athlete and spokesperson for NHL 10. Kane was drafted in 2007 by the Chicago Blackhawks and made his NHL debut on October 4th of the same year. He was named rookie of the year winning the Calder Memorial Trophy that year scoring 21 goals and totaling 72 points. This past season Kane scored 25 goals and finished with 70 points. He also represented the Blackhawks in the 2009 NHL All-Star game. In the playoffs, Kane helped his team reach the Western Conference Finals scoring 9 goals including his first career hat trick against the Vancouver Canucks.
