Linden to Stick to Virtual Ice and Guarantees "No Comeback"

In preparation for tonight’s Midnight Launch at the Robson and Granville Future Shop, former Canuck Trevor Linden got his hands on NHL 10 alongside Producer David Littman and some of the local press.

FTW - Hockey Time

September is one of my favourite months of the year, not only because I get a year older (or despite it, that is) but the presents I receive are usually in the form of one of my all-time favorite games, NHL 10. This year NHL 10 hits the streets next week on Tuesday the 15th and for the first time we will be hosting a couple of midnight releases at Future Shops in Toronto and Vancouver. With President Obama welcoming the Pens to the White House today and team prospects hitting the ice this week, it's officially time to think hockey.

Growing up in Vancouver I've been a fan of the Canucks since I was allowed as a kid to stay up late in '82 to watch their magical first run into the Stanley Cup Finals against the New York Islanders. The series didn't go the way Canucks fans wanted it to, but it was a great run and a great year for the guys who wore the Flying V's. At seven years old I was hooked on the game and the team, and over the years as the jerseys and the team changed, I longed for them to return to the finals for another chance at their first Cup.

Then came '94 and that chance against the other New York team, the Rangers. In a battle where players on both teams left it all on the ice, the series would go seven games and the Rangers would win the Cup by a goal. One of the most memorable pictures is of the team's captain Trevor Linden leaning his head on goaltender Kirk McLean's mask after the loss. It signified all the sweat and tears and eventual heartache that came with coming so close to capturing the holy grail of hockey.

Back then while at UBC, my buddies and I relived the series looking for different outcomes on the SNES with NHL 95 and spent more hours playing the video game than I should have. We'd set up tournaments and battle throughout the school year and I even remembered playing games to simulate what we thought would happen in games to come. We didn't care that the game wasn't as authentic as it is today, we only cared that we could be play as our favorite team and feel the rush of scoring the game winner (most of the time with the dreaded one-timer goals). We always wondered, "Could it get any better than this???"

Your damn right it could and next week the series that has received the Sports Game of the Year nod for the past two years isn't holding back with NHL 10. The team followed up '09 with 3-on-3 NHL Arcade and still managed to put in over 200 gameplay improvements to kick it up a notch for this year's game. The producers have been providing the community with regular blogs and videos and screenshots to whet gamers' appetites. Even the demo was one like none other giving NHL fans new and old to the series a taste of the new Battle for the Cup and Be a Pro modes.

And so with Linden retired, there's time for him to take up gaming and what better game to do so than with NHL 10 where he can don the '94 uni's or, better yet, go old skool with the Flying V's in this year's game. Recreate those Stanley Cup Finals and hope for a different outcome in the new Battle for the Cup mode which has been implemented into the game very nicely. Or just jump into Season Mode and play with Luongo fresh off one of the most lucrative contracts ever for a Canuck (is Gillis a genius or what?). A whole other blog there in itself but something that I may look into with some of my own players with the new Be a GM mode.

Like most hockey fans, I'm excited at this time of year as the release of the game next week means that the season is right around the corner. Can this be the year my 'nucks go FTW and finally put it together? Again, another blog for another time.

Next week however, join Trevor Linden along with me and the game producers at Future Shop on Granville & Robson Monday night for the Midnight Release event. Be first to pick up a copy and see if you have the stick skills to bring home the Cup yourself. And for those of you in Toronto (boooo! Lol), you can join other NHL producers along with former captain Wendel Clark and current Leaf Ian White at the Toronto Life Square Future Shop. It's time to go FTW with one of the Best Titles of The Year!

Tonight We Dine With Kings

Today the LA Kings had their opening day of LA Kings Fest and EA SPORTS was to not only be a part of the festivities with a large chunk of space carved out with systems set up to show off NHL 10, we were also invited to meet some of the Kings prior to their walking on to the stage to meet their fans at the Nokia Center.

FTW - These guys have played before

Over the weekend the LA Kings kicked off their 2009-10 season with interactive events and face-to-face time among fans at the first ever Hockey Fest in LA.