Now that EA Sports has shown its hand, the hockey videogame battle of 2007 looks it's going to be a good one. 2K Sports' showed off an early version of NHL 2K7 for Xbox 360 back at E3 and, at yesterday's summer showcase, EA gave the press the first glimpse of their puck debut on the 360.

　　EA is starting more or less from the bottom up with NHL 07 and, in the process, essentially giving the development team a bit more than the standard year-long development cycle that is part and parcel with most EA Sports games. The results are pretty tangible, at least based on what I saw last week during our visit to EA Canada, and at yesterday's EA summer showcase.

　　It's telling to me that more folks were huddled around the NHL 07 consoles yesterday than practically any other sports game on display. Say what you will about the popularity of football games such as Madden and NCAA 07, but the stop-and-go nature of the sport doesn't lend itself as well to multiplayer as hockey, in my opinion. Things can change on a dime in a game of puck and the ever-changing nature of the game means you're never that far away from another goal (or another huge save). It's arguably the perfect multiplayer sport, especially when both players are sharing the same couch and console. And judging from the trash talking and ever-present laughter from yesterday's event at the NHL 07 kiosks, I'm not alone in that opinion.

　　So, when it comes to hockey we now know more or less what to expect from both NHL 07 and NHL 2K7. Both companies have placed their puck cards on the table in preparation for their respective launches later this year. Sure, we'll probably have some surprises between now and then from both games--as well as some time to separate the hype from the hotness. One thing's for sure, it's going to be a long, drawn-out summer until we get back on the ice.