National Hockey League

The National Hockey League (NHL for short) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The Stanley Cup, the oldest professional sports trophy in North America, is awarded annually to the league playoff champion at the end of each season. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and is considered to be the top ranked professional ice hockey league in the world, with players from 17 countries as of the 2023–24 season. The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) also views the Stanley Cup as one of the "most important championships available to the sport". The NHL is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan. Warner Bros. Discovery owns the media rights to the NHL.

On April 3rd, 2024, the official MultiVersus Instagram account announced a collaboration between the game and the hockey league.^[1]

MultiVersus x NHL Face-Off: Avalanche Vs. Golden Knights real-time animated presentation

The collaboration consisted of a real-time animated presentation based on the matchup between the Colorado Avalanche and the Vegas Golden Knights broadcasted on Warner Bros. Discovery's TruTV cable channel and Max streaming platform (via Max’s Bleacher Report (B/R) Sports Add-on) on April 14th, 2024. Prior to the presentation, a special team selection draft of the MultiVersus icons who would play in the game was broadcasted during NHL on TNT Postgame's coverage of the Buffalo Sabres at Detroit Red Wings on April 7th. The draft revealed Shaggy, Batman, Bugs Bunny, and Wonder Woman to be representing the Vegas Golden Knights, while Velma, Superman, Steven Universe, and Finn the Human played for the Colorado Avalanche. The animation consisted of the Fighters mentioned above being animated over some of the players using the NHL EDGE tracking technology, while the other players consisted of cartoony versions of NHL’s biggest stars (such as Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Jack Eichel, and Jonathan Marchessault). The broadcast concluded with the Vegas Golden Knights winning the game.

The ice rink that the game took place on was part of the larger "Hockey Island", which featured elements from the Trophy's E.D.G.E., The Court, Tree Fort, and Sky Arena Maps. Taz acted as the game's referee, and Stripe also appeared among the spectators (most of which were just generic human models) for the game, with multiple copies of his model sprinkled around in the background, possibly in order to represent the Gremlins species as a whole. The Iron Giant (using his Iron Giant (Classic) Variant) also appeared as a spectator, eating scrap metal as he watched the game. At one point, the Giant attacked Stripe, who was guarding the Stanley Cup, by flicking him of the island and eating his chainsaw. Other characters such as Arya Stark, BMO, and Marvin the Martian also appeared as spectators (though the latter had his model glitched, and his torso appeared below the ground). The Mystery Machine from Scooby-Doo was used as the zamboni for the game, with Shaggy, Velma, and even Scooby-Doo himself appearing in its cab, and with a generic ghost chasing it continuously. The Machine moved along the rink via doors that teleported it around. Steve Mears and Colby Armstrong acted as the commentators for the game. The players, spectators, and even the puck itself emoted using Stickers to signify certain events (such as one of the teams scoring a point), and Ringout VFXs were also used to signify goals. Players that got penalized were temporarily frozen in a pillar of ice outside the rink. The non-edited broadcast that wasn't related to MultiVersus was also streamed on Warner Bros. Discovery's TNT television channel.

During the game, the official MultiVersus Twitter account also uploaded three new gameplay clips. These clips featured new moves for Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman, with the main highlight being the new Parry Attacks. Finn the Human's Robot-Arm Finn Variant was also revealed via the trailer for the event.

Each player Fighter had an uniquely designed hockey stick:

Batman - his emblem, name, and suit colors

Bugs Bunny - a carrot

Finn the Human - his Scarlet sword

Shaggy - Scooby-Doo

Steven Universe - his gemstone

Superman - his emblem and suit colors

Velma - the Mystery Machine and its paint job

Wonder Woman - her emblem and boots colors

The puck also changed its design depending on what Fighter possessed it:

Batman - his emblem

Bugs Bunny - a Pie (albeit, with a different design than the in-game Item)

Finn the Human - Jake the Dog

Shaggy - a Sandwich

Steven Universe - his gemstone

Superman - his emblem and suit colors

Velma - a magnifying glass

Wonder Woman - her shield and the Lasso of Truth

The match has been since archived on the Internet Archive and can be viewed here.

Official Description

MultiVersus NHL Face-Off between Avalanche, Golden Knights premieres April 14 on truTV

Warner Bros. Discovery characters will be on ice for real-time animated presentation using EDGE tracking technology

NEW YORK -- TNT Sports, Warner Bros. Games and the National Hockey League are joining forces to bring viewers a clash of excellence in hockey and real-time animation for the first-ever MultiVersus NHL Face-Off on Sunday, April 14 at 3:30 p.m. ET, exclusively on truTV and Max’s B/R Sports Add-on.

Legendary and beloved Warner Bros. Discovery characters appearing in the highly anticipated MultiVersus videogame, including Bugs Bunny, Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, Velma and Shaggy, Steven Universe and Finn the Human, will take center ice in a fully animated presentation featuring a matchup of the two most recent Stanley Cup champions, Colorado Avalanche at Vegas Golden Knights. The slobbery and short-fused Looney Tunes character Tasmanian Devil will officiate the game and drop the puck on the afternoon’s action.

Before they take the ice, a special team selection draft of the MultiVersus icons will happen during NHL on TNT’s postgame coverage of the Buffalo Sabres at Detroit Red Wings on Sunday, April 7.

The animated presentation of Avalanche at Golden Knights will use the NHL’s innovative NHL EDGE tracking technology to recreate the action on the ice as it happens in real-time, featuring the characters of MultiVersus alongside avatars of the NHL’s biggest stars — including Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar of the Avalanche against Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault of the Golden Knights, among others. The ice rink for the alternate telecast will be dynamic and incorporate rotating elements based on environments from the MultiVersus game, such as the Space Jam Court, Adventure Time Tree Fort, Sky Arena and Trophy’s E.D.G.E.

Steve Mears will call the game, with color commentary from Colby Armstrong. The duo will also share game notes and analysis during the first and second intermissions. The traditional broadcast of Avalanche at Golden Knights will be available on TNT and Max’s B/R Sports Add-On with Kenny Albert, Eddie Olczyk and Brian Boucher on the call.

MultiVersus NHL Face-Off will merge two different tracking technologies — NHL EDGE positional data (NHL Puck and Player tracking) and Hawk-Eye Innovations optical tracking to generate realistic character and player avatar movements to best represent the movements of the NHL players on the ice. The real-time animation will be produced in association with NHL innovation partner Beyond Sports.

Published by Warner Bros. Games and developed by Player First Games, MultiVersus is a free-to-play videogame with an ever-expanding cast of iconic heroes and personalities, set against the backdrop of reimagined universes and environments. The game is scheduled to officially launch on May 28. For additional information, visit MultiVersus.com.^[2]

Trivia

The broadcast included with a small gameplay showcase which featured the commentators describe all of the Fighter archetypes in the game, including the now-scrapped Support class.
Hockey Island featured the big flying structures from Trophy E.D.G.E.'s scrapped variation in its background.
Some of the renders shown throughout the broadcast accidently showed Steven without his teeth and gemstone.

Gallery

Images

Promotional poster for the NHL collaboration.
Teaser for Wonder Woman's model in the animation.
Teaser for Bugs Bunny's model in the animation.
Early preview of the Hockey Island model.
Promotional poster for the Golden Knights team.
Promotional poster for the Avalanche team.
"This ice ‘bout to start melting cause we’re bringin the heat! 🔥"
"Steven was the first to get the hockey rite of passage - missing tooth and a shiner."
"Prepare yourselves. Taz is calling the shots now! Let’s just hope they brought a translator."
Teaser for the broadcast, featuring all the renders made for the Fighters who played in the game.
Image from an article detailing the making of the broadcast.^[3]
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