Drake fan Connor McDavid campaigns for ‘NHL 17’ cover

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As the lone ‘NHL 17’ coverboy candidate from a Canadian team, Connor McDavid has hit the campaign trail early.

The Edmonton Oilers phenom is pushing for fans to cast their online vote for him to become the face of the iconic video game franchise, to the tune of 5,000 retweets in less than 24 hours.

McDavid was among the eight finalists in the tournament-style vote-off, which culminates in Las Vegas, where EA Sports will crown a new coverboy at the NHL Awards in June.

McDavid faces off against Philadelphia’s Jakub Voracek in Round 1.

San Jose’s Joe Pavelski, Los Angeles’s Anze Kopitar, Florida’s Aleksander Barkov, Dallas’s Jamie Benn, St. Louis’s Vladimir Tarasenko and Tampa Bay’s Victor Hedman round out the field. One player from each World Cup team is represented.

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Brent Burns has already gone to bat for his buddy Pavelski, a.k.a. Captain America:

Modern Family star Eric Stonestreet has his boy Kopitar’s back:

And as we learned at the NHL All-Star Game, the prospect of a write-in candidate always looms:

In conjunction with the cover contest, EA revealed some fancy new features to the 2017 edition of its game in a sneak-peek YouTube video.

Relocation will now be available in GM mode, and players can manipulate their home country in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. Check out the new features here:

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