'Not my William Nylander': EA's NHL 27 face scans go viral for all the wrong reasons

Scans including Maple Leafs stars William Nylander, Auston Matthews and John Tavares have been criticized by video game players. Dan Bilicki Published Sep 07, 2026 • 2 minute read Toronto Maple Leafs' William Nylander in NHL 27. Twitter See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. EA Sports is a billion-dollar company that has been producing a wide variety of video games for more than three decades with a famous slogan of 'It's in the game.' However, one thing that seemingly isn't 'in the game' for the company's latest NHL release has many fans upset: Realistic player face scans. With NHL 27 becoming available to play late last week and the full release coming on Friday, players have taken to social media, sharing screenshots of some of hockey's biggest stars — and what they actually look like in real life. While there are a few stars that look similar enough to their virtual counterparts — Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Quinn Hughes, to name a few — many others are either way off and a few are even nightmare-inducing. 'None of these players are real. They can't hurt you,' one user joked in reply to a Reddit post highlighting some of the images. 'Their eyes all seem way too close together,' another user commented, to which another replied: 'Except for Cole Caufield, whose eyes look like they can't run fast enough away from each other.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Of the Toronto Maple Leafs scans posted on social media, several stand out for all the wrong reasons. Auston Matthews — who has been a cover star for the game on two occasions — has a moustache that looks closer to Wendel Clark's than his own facial hair and his hair/hairline is noticeably thicker than in real life. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. A screenshot of William Nylander looks all wrong, prompting one user on X to write: 'That is not my William Nylander' with crying emojis. As for John Tavares, one screenshot from in-game action showed the former Leafs captain having eyes which could be described as 'soulless.' Maple Leafs centre John Tavares in real life and in NHL 27. Getty Images, Twitter Which face scan is the worst? However, nothing could possibly prepare hockey fans for the appearance of Boston Bruins defenceman Mason Lohrei. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. At 6-foot-5 and 218 pounds, the 25-year-old can be an imposing force on the ice. But with a face scan like his in NHL 27 , he's more likely to haunt video game players in their dreams. RECOMMENDED VIDEO