Jason Spezza Named Cover Athlete for NHL® 2K8

[skanji]

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20070710005599&newsLang=en

Jason Spezza Named Cover Athlete for NHL® 2K8
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--2K Sports, the sports publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (Nasdaq: TTWO), announced today that Jason Spezza, first-line center for the Ottawa Senators, has been named cover athlete and official spokesman for NHL® 2K8, 2K Sports’ top-rated NHL video game for five years in row*.

“It’s a great honor to be the NHL 2K8 cover athlete,” said Jason Spezza. “The NHL 2K series has always selected some of the best players in the NHL and I’m really excited to follow in their footsteps of representing the finest hockey video game title this year.”

The Canadian-born Spezza was only the third player to represent Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships as a 16-year old. The first round choice of the Ottawa Senators and second overall pick in the 2001 NHL Draft, his great skills were apparent very early in his career. Reinvigorating the sport with his raw talent and enthusiasm, his magnificent performance in the 2007 Eastern Conference finals against the Buffalo Sabres made him one of the most exciting players in the next generation of NHL stars.

“We are thrilled to have Jason Spezza as our cover athlete for NHL 2K8. Spezza is a player that truly embodies the spirit of hockey which is something that we pride ourselves in with the NHL 2K series,” said Graeme Bayless, President of Kush Games. “We are very pleased to be working with a cover athlete that is such an avid gamer and who is committed to contributing valuable insight to the authenticity and development of the NHL 2K series.”

The top-rated* NHL franchise returns with NHL 2K8, showcasing new in-depth gameplay mechanics, all-new goaltending animations and stunning next-gen visuals that truly take advantage of the power of next generation consoles. More exciting features will be revealed soon that deliver an entirely new NHL experience from the critically acclaimed makers of the NHL 2K series.

NHL 2K8 will be available this fall for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, and the PLAYSTATION®3 and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment systems.

For more information, log onto http://www.2ksports.com.

*According to GameRankings.com average scores of 2003-2007 NHL video games.

[Cas77]

Way to go Spezz!

[sparco]

CHOKE ARTIST! LOL..
I like him, hes a good player. But hes also a playoff final choke artist

[maebach]

What about Heatley/Alfredsson?

[JWL]

Wasn't Heatley on in 2005 when he was with Atlanta?

[sshe11]

Wasn't Heatley on in 2005 when he was with Atlanta?

Yup I think that was EA Sports NHL 05 ... Way to go Spezz !!! Hopefully you sign a long term deal :razz:

[Diamondog]

CHOKE ARTIST! LOL..
I like him, hes a good player. But hes also a playoff final choke artist

boring.

[bobbings]

congratz to spezza. canadian pride!

[Riflem@n]

Yup I think that was EA Sports NHL 05 ... Way to go Spezz !!! Hopefully you sign a long term deal :razz:

And then they took him off after the car accident.

[Mintmaster]

boring.Well, I gotta agree with him. By far the worst player on the team during the finals, and he dragged Alfie and Heatley down with him. Alfie became a superstar again the minute he started playing with Fisher.

Congrats to Spezza, but I hope this doesn't get to his head. He needs a dose of humility more than anything else. Wasn't there something about an EA jinx for players that grace the covers of their games?

[crsm0085]

You beat me to it Mintmaster, but here you go anyway:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/0704/gallery.nhl.ea.sports.curse/content.1.html

[pfdude]

Good thing it's not an EA cover

[hsd1]

Well, I gotta agree with him. By far the worst player on the team during the finals, and he dragged Alfie and Heatley down with him. Alfie became a superstar again the minute he started playing with Fisher.

Congrats to Spezza, but I hope this doesn't get to his head. He needs a dose of humility more than anything else. Wasn't there something about an EA jinx for players that grace the covers of their games?


Thats for EA this is 2K sports. And that EA curse is for the Madden (NFL) games, its called the Madden jinx.

[Alvito]

okay is someone playing tricks on me or am i dreaming?


wrong section.

[pfdude]

okay is someone playing tricks on me or am i dreaming?


wrong section.

A lot could be said about 99% of your posts. Are you the forum police now? It's sports related and video game related.

[Alvito]

A lot could be said about 99% of your posts. Are you the forum police now? It's sports related and video game related.

show me three of my topics that are in the wrong section.


I am the forum police, yes. Just they havent given me moderator powers yet. But those I will attain at a later date. This is a game. It should be in the entertainment section.

[sshe11]

wow I cant believe you guys haven't added this troll alvito to your ignore list ... and did they really change the cover of NHL 04 after Heatley's car accident ?

[nsx]

did they really change the cover of NHL 04 after Heatley's car accident ?

Yes, they did (with Sakic as the replacement).

[sshe11]

Yes, they did (with Sakic as the replacement).

damn ... my cousin has the Heatley one ...

[Alvito]

wow I cant believe you guys haven't added this troll alvito to your ignore list ... and did they really change the cover of NHL 04 after Heatley's car accident ?

They are not called accidents, because that word implies nobody is at fault. The are called collisions. Speed Kills.

[Diamondog]

show me three of my topics that are in the wrong section.


I am the forum police, yes. Just they havent given me moderator powers yet. But those I will attain at a later date. This is a game. It should be in the entertainment section.

LOL that's rich!

[pfdude]

show me three of my topics that are in the wrong section.


I am the forum police, yes. Just they havent given me moderator powers yet. But those I will attain at a later date. This is a game. It should be in the entertainment section.

Most of the threads you start get deleted. It's most of your posts that are in the wrong spot.


oh and you rarely ever make any sense :twisted:

[sshe11]

They are not called accidents, because that word implies nobody is at fault. The are called collisions. Speed Kills.

oh wow that is original .. Good job on quoting Hot Fuzz ..

[krash322]

broken leg for spezza becuz he's on the cover

[Alvito]

Most of the threads you start get deleted. It's most of your posts that are in the wrong spot.


oh and you rarely ever make any sense :twisted:

And what are we discussing here? The validity of posts in proper section or threads in the proper section? I think you are the one who doesn't make sense, first you said my threads are in the wrong place, now you're saying they get deleted, make up your mind.

oh wow that is original .. Good job on quoting Hot Fuzz ..

What the hell is hot fuzz.

[sshe11]

What the hell is hot fuzz.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425112/

[Vich]

While I'm not a big fan of him, I'm kind of surprised that 2K didn't jump all over the opportunity to grab Crosby as the cover athlete. Then again, it's only a matter of time...

I like the selection much better than Eric Staal on the cover of 08.

[swiftfox]

Spezza? ....really?


Weak.

[pfdude]

And what are we discussing here?

That you lack merit

[Alvito]

That you lack merit

I find that very hypocritical of you. This thread is about a game, and you want to talk about me. I am flattered, but next time you try to tell me that I don't post in the right places, please evaluate yourself first.

If you want to discuss stuff about me, please make another thread or PM me.

[kevin01]

wow I cant believe you guys haven't added this troll alvito to your ignore list ... and did they really change the cover of NHL 04 after Heatley's car accident ?

I can't believe you are still crying about him. What did he say to you.

[Alvito]

I can't believe you are still crying about him. What did he say to you.

lol they just dont like me cuz i argue with them in their sens thread. :twisted:

[kevin01]

lol they just dont like me cuz i argue with them in their sens thread. :twisted:

lol yeah i know, but hes getting annoying crying every two seconds about you. When you or whatever other fan made that thread, we got your message.

[sshe11]

lol yeah i know, but hes getting annoying crying every two seconds about you. When you or whatever other fan made that thread, we got your message.

lol you guys define trolls ...

[kevin01]

lol you guys define trolls ...

and you define baby

baby [bey-bee] noun
1. Sens Fans (plural, babies)
2. sshe11

[sshe11]

and you define baby

baby [bey-bee] noun
1. Sens Fans (plural, babies)
2. sshe11


haha good one ... another frustrated and jealous "Toronto Make Me Laff" fan ...

[kevin01]

haha good one ... another frustrated and jealous "Toronto Make Me Laff" fan ...

Frustrated, never.

And jealous of what? a team that was put on life-support not too long ago. a team that is proud of playoff failure after playoff failure after being regular season powerhouses? A team that after this season will be blown up, with a poor group of prospects?

Tell me, what do i have to be jealous for? I am a fan of one the most storied teams in sports. A fan of a team that has the biggest and best following.

So tell me, what do I have to be jealous for?

I make you laugh? Pretty amazing. Didnt realize you can laugh while you choke.

[sshe11]

Frustrated, never.

And jealous of what? a team that was put on life-support not too long ago. a team that is proud of playoff failure after playoff failure after being regular season powerhouses? A team that after this season will be blown up, with a poor group of prospects?

Tell me, what do i have to be jealous for? I am a fan of one the most storied teams in sports. A fan of a team that has the biggest and best following.

So tell me, what do I have to be jealous for?

I make you laugh? Pretty amazing. Didnt realize you can laugh while you choke.

ohh man you guys do live in Lalaland ... accusing our team of playoff failures when your team doesn't even make it is very intriguing ... your team is the most storied team in sports, heard all the stories about not winning the cup for 40 years ??

Oh yeah I can laugh at you because my team made it to the Stanley Cup finals and yours didn't ..

There's no point bashing each other's team in this thread, its clearly OT .. Lets just agree to disagree ...

[Alvito]

ohh man you guys do live in Lalaland ... accusing our team of playoff failures when your team doesn't even make it is very intriguing ... your team is the most storied team in sports, heard all the stories about not winning the cup for 40 years ??

Oh yeah I can laugh at you because my team made it to the Stanley Cup finals and yours didn't ..

There's no point bashing each other's team in this thread, its clearly OT .. Lets just agree to disagree ...

our team is rebuilding and piecing together a winning team, the sens have been a winning team for the past 5-6 years and yet have only been to the cup finals once, and they blew that chance also.

face it, you cant handle the heat, you just complain and throw the word troll around when you get mentally abused by leaf fans. go cry and make a thread about how you hate kevin01 and how he should be banned from the sports section.

lmao. you and skanji make me laugh so hard sometimes.

[swiftfox]

Spezza? ....really?


Weak.

....seriously...Spezza?

I can only assume that Alexi Yashin will be on the cover of NHL 2K9

[Bytown]

our team is rebuilding and piecing together a winning team, the sens have been a winning team for the past 5-6 years and yet have only been to the cup finals once, and they blew that chance also.

face it, you cant handle the heat, you just complain and throw the word troll around when you get mentally abused by leaf fans. go cry and make a thread about how you hate kevin01 and how he should be banned from the sports section.

lmao. you and skanji make me laugh so hard sometimes.

How many times the past 75 years have the leafs been to the final.

[Kohanz]

What's all this fuss about a videogame that will only sell a handful (relatively) of copies.

[pfdude]

I find that very hypocritical of you. This thread is about a game, and you want to talk about me.

you're calling me hypocritical when you're complaining that a sports video game should only be in the entertainment section when it could go either way?

[pfdude]

lol they just dont like me cuz i argue with them in their sens thread. :twisted:

Actually, it's because you're the most annoying person on RFD. It has nothing to do with the Leafs or Senators.

[Spor 13]

What's all this fuss about a videogame that will only sell a handful (relatively) of copies.

+1. Who cares if Spezza is on the cover?? This game will suck just like the rest of the 2K series and NHL08, at least the xbox360 version, will kick its ass once again.

[sshe11]

our team is rebuilding and piecing together a winning team

ROFLMAO !!!! I don't think I've ever laughed so hard on RFD ... and I don't throw around the word troll, its specifically used as a synonym for Leaf fans crapping in Sens threads ...

[Alvito]

ROFLMAO !!!! I don't think I've ever laughed so hard on RFD ... and I don't throw around the word troll, its specifically used as a synonym for Leaf fans crapping in Sens threads ...

I'm an english major, and when you try and try stupid **** like this it makes me laugh.

synonyms are words that can be used to replace other words, NOT REPLACE PHRASES.

Glad we make each other laugh.

Actually, it's because you're the most annoying person on RFD. It has nothing to do with the Leafs or Senators.

lol, block me then. problem solved. i dont give a ****.

you're calling me hypocritical when you're complaining that a sports video game should only be in the entertainment section when it could go either way?

THANK YOU FOR SAYING THAT!

If the op wants to put this in the sports section, then it should be IN THE SENS THREAD!

[kevin01]

Actually, it's because you're the most annoying person on RFD. It has nothing to do with the Leafs or Senators.

Alvito annoying... lol pretty good sports poster if you ask me.

sshe11, you laughed at what Alvito said? Somebody has a life.

[pfdude]

THANK YOU FOR SAYING THAT!

If the op wants to put this in the sports section, then it should be IN THE SENS THREAD!

Are you sure you don't have a secret stash of magic fairy dust hidden in your official RFD forums administrator rule book?

[sshe11]

Alvito annoying... lol pretty good sports poster if you ask me.

sshe11, you laughed at what Alvito said? Somebody has a life.

ofcourse you wont find it funny because you are a Leaf fan .. anyways, no point arguing over this .. time to move on ..

[kevin01]

ofcourse you wont find it funny because you are a Leaf fan .. anyways, no point arguing over this .. time to move on ..

And ofcourse you wont admit that the Sens are the biggest underachievers of the 2000s decade because you are still choking.

Are you sure you don't have a secret stash of magic fairy dust hidden in your official RFD forums administrator rule book?

Why someone stole all the fairy dust out of your joke book?

[swiftfox]

alright, alright...save the trash talk for the season (I wonder why there isn't an NHL trash talking thread..)

The only thing we should be discussing is the video game and why (oh why!) they would put Spezza on the cover.

[sshe11]

alright, alright...save the trash talk for the season (I wonder why there isn't an NHL trash talking thread..)

The only thing we should be discussing is the video game and why (oh why!) they would put Spezza on the cover.

He's not that bad ... Ovechkin was already on EA 2007, and maybe Crosby has some deal with EA for NHL 08 ??

[sshe11]

nvm they have Eric Staal on EA NHL 08 !!!!

[swiftfox]

He's not that bad ... Ovechkin was already on EA 2007, and maybe Crosby has some deal with EA for NHL 08 ??

I suppose my issue is less about his ability to show up to clutch games, than it is his attitute. He is everything I despise about hockey players - he embodies the typical jock-from-your-highschool that you couldn't stand (ironic, considering the amount of sports teams I was on in highschool).

My best friend knows Spezza personally, and his words were 'he puts the ass in class'.

Certainly not someone for kids to idolize.

That's all.

[sshe11]

I suppose my issue is less about his ability to show up to clutch games, than it is his attitute. He is everything I despise about hockey players - he embodies the typical jock-from-your-highschool that you couldn't stand (ironic, considering the amount of sports teams I was on in highschool).

My best friend knows Spezza personally, and his words were 'he puts the ass in class'.

Certainly not someone for kids to idolize.

That's all.

haha thats awesome ...

[Alvito]

To whichever mod is deleting my posts, please pm me what was wrong with them, so i dont make the same mistake in the future.

thank you

[pfdude]

Why someone stole all the fairy dust out of your joke book?

Alvito must be glad to have a friend on here

[Alvito]

Alvito must be glad to have a friend on here

friend? hes not my friend. if you have friends that are just a screen name on rfd. you need to go outside, and say hello to your neighbours.

[kevin01]

Alvito must be glad to have a friend on here

LOL yeah a friend on an online forum.

Im just backin up a leaf fan.

[pfdude]

LOL yeah a friend on an online forum.

Im just backin up a leaf fan.

I already said it had nothing to do with that. The guy could be a Sens fan and my opinion would remain the same.

[Alvito]

I already said it had nothing to do with that. The guy could be a Sens fan and my opinion would remain the same.

but i am a sens fan.