EA NHL 25 Cover a Special Honor for Hughes Brothers | FEATURE

TAKEAWAYS

• Hughes brothers honored to be the cover players of EA Sports NHL 25 game
• Jack, Quinn and Luke talk about being the first set of brothers to appear on the cover
• Jack shares which game was their first EA Sports NHL game, with ties to the Devils
• What their NHL gaming habits look like, including how they compete against one another

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For Jack and Luke Hughes, as well as older brother Quinn, it's almost hard to believe. The Hughes brothers are 24, 23, and 20 years old and are already superstars in the National Hockey League. The trio of brothers has taken the NHL by storm, one at a time. Quinn arrived in Vancouver during the 2018-19 season, Jack for the 2019-20 season, and Luke at the end of the 2022-23 season. All three have become must-see TV and are carving out their way as bona fide NHL stars.

Now, their stardom has sprung them onto the cover of EA Sports' NHL 25. All three brothers, together.

"I think it was really special that the three of us could do it together," Jack, from his off-season home, shared, "I think we're the first brothers that have done the cover together, so pretty special for us. And you know, for me, that was a really exciting thing, just being on the cover. And obviously, it's a plus being on the cover with Luke and Quinn."

Quinn, Jack and Luke are the first set of brothers to be featured on the cover of EA's coveted game.

"It's a really great honor and something we never really dreamt of as kids," Luke added, "We grew up playing (EA's) NHL, and it's just such an honor and really special for us to be on it."

It was just after the All-Star Game when eldest brother Quinn texted middle brother Jack about the proposed idea. It's something that has been in the works for a few months, finally culminating in a video and photo shoot earlier this summer to put the final touches on being the first trio of brothers on an EA NHL game.

"We're always together," Jack said of the off-season where the brothers get in their quality time, "but I think for us to have the opportunity to do it together, I don't think we've really done anything like that on that scale. Definitely different than a regular day for us in terms of just going to the gym and golfing and whatnot."

It's not just anyone who gets the distinct honor to grace the cover of the video game giant. The Hughes brothers are now among some of the league's top names to ever play the game to be featured. That includes the 2014 cover that featured a player deeply tied to Jack's NHL team.

"I think we got our first PlayStation the Marty Brodeur years," he said, "That was the first year we were really like grinding hard on 'chel."

"EA is such a massive brand, and usually whoever's on the cover, whoever is the cover athlete, is a great player," Quinn said, "And so for us to be on that, I mean, it wasn't like a dream I thought was attainable, but when we were approached, it's a really cool thing. And you look at the last couple guys who have been on the covers, between Austin (Matthews), (Connor) McDavid and some of the guys to be on, we're just honored."

The Hughes brothers, as you can imagine, are intensely competitive. You don't have three brothers make it to the NHL if they're not. And it's not just hockey. It's everything, including picking up the video game controllers and facing off against one another. Even when there's less time during the hockey season to devote to video games, the Hughes brothers still manage to compete.

“We used to do season mode,” explained Jack, “You could do season mode, have like, three GMs, and we each have a team. We'd have like, 15 minutes a guy to make trades. Guys would be so scummy, make as many trades as they can. And then we'd build our roster, then sim the season and play playoffs.”

When it came to drafting and making trades, all three brothers remained silent about whether they'd have their brothers on their team. But one thing Jack made very clear was he steers clear of his Devils teammates.

“I definitely wouldn’t play with the Devils,” Jack laughed. “I’d have a tough time making trades trading those guys away."

Pre-order NHL 25 here, with a release date of Oct. 4, 2024.