Claude Giroux was declared the winner of the NHL 13 cover vote, and was announced as the game's featured cover athlete earlier this week by EA Sports. The Philadelphia Flyers forward beat Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne to win the cover tournament.

This was the first cover vote for the NHL series, which EA Sports said resulted in over 26 million votes. Unlike the Madden cover votes in the past, tournament voting was hosted directly on the league's website, underscoring the sense of value both the NHL and players have for the opportunity to grace the cover of the game.

NHL 13 will launch September 11 in North America for Xbox 360 and PS3, and September 14 in Europe.