THE TELETYPE:
What started as a Twitter message from sports journalist Dhiren Mahiban is quickly snowballing into fact.
The CBC reported yesterday that the teams of the Canadian Hockey League will likely appear in Electronic Arts' next installment of its NHL series: NHL 11. The report specifically cites that all members of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League have been asked to submit pictures of their arenas and jerseys to the video game company. There is no confirmation on whether or not the Ontario Hockey League and Western Hockey League, the other two subdivisions of the CHL, have been asked to submit information as well.
The report also implies that current players will be available. However, there are no reports of teams submitting names and likenesses to EA, and the CHL does not purport itself to be a professional league, so it is unclear if there is a device in place by which the names and likenesses can be licensed en masse.
Adding CHL teams to a professional sports video game would be a major jump in visibility for the Canadian major junior leagues, who dominate North American player development.