NHL 19 Franchise Mode Thread

[kinger8998]

talk about your franchise modes in here, give tips, and post your logs

Click to read more...

 

[Davegarri]

Anyone on PS4 keep having your game crash while creating an expansion team? It's so annoying

 

[ThorNton Apologist]

Anyone on PS4 keep having your game crash while creating an expansion team? It's so annoying

I had the same happen twice so far (XboxOne)

 

[GOilers88]

Yup

 

[Spotty 2 Hotty]

I am so pissed. Spent 20 minutes finding the right color, font, jerseys, and pants to get the old Oakland Seals look perfect only to have the damn thing crash. I'm not touching this game again for at least a week or until we hear about them fixing this shit.

 

[Echo Roku]

4th draft since starting. Franchise medium level goalie showed up projected at like ~180th on the CS board. Was like 48 overall skill wise, mind you. But Franchise medium taken in the 6th round, man. They really do have some gems of goaliess show up in later rounds, it seems. Had it fully scouted and was sure he was franchise even, then took him in the 6th round. I also saw someone take an Elite medium goalie later that round

 

[hockeynorth]

4th draft since starting. Franchise medium level goalie showed up projected at like ~180th on the CS board. Was like 48 overall skill wise, mind you. But Franchise medium taken in the 6th round, man. They really do have some gems of goaliess show up in later rounds, it seems. Had it fully scouted and was sure he was franchise even, then took him in the 6th round. I also saw someone take an Elite medium goalie later that round

The amount of goalies you can steal in the late rounds is amazing, not to mention realistic as typically the best goalies go late, and first rounders are so high risk. The other crazy thing is the amount of low elite Russian snipers I've found late lol. They are constant. Finally I drafted this guy Rich Waters (5 foot 8 playmaker) in the 5, as my scouts said he was a gem, two years later he is 85 overall and pushing for a first line job against my 3rd overall pick from the same year. I love the draft and the late steals.

 

[Jesus Take the Wheel]

Anyone have the issue where basically every day your owner changes his goals while your trying to sim? Extremely irritating

 

[Cor]

Anyone have the issue where basically every day your owner changes his goals while your trying to sim? Extremely irritating

Your first mistake was playing with that trash option turned on.

Owner mode adds nothing and is simply a hassle

 

[Cygnusx1018]

any tips for scouting effectively and efficiently? This system is overwhelming me

 

[hockeynorth]

any tips for scouting effectively and efficiently? This system is overwhelming me

Check where CS has guys ranked at the start of the year and in which leagues seem heavy, (some years DEL has more then Extraliga or Allsveskan etc) and transfer your scouts there (Euro only clearly, you just don't need a scout I. leagues that only have like 3 guys in the top 100 IMO). Then I have my scouts each scouting a different player ranking area for 4 weeks and alternate it. Or just tell them to find any prospect for a long period of time and they'll find you some late round gems, but if you're bad appoint someone for every lottery range guy for sure.

 

[kinger8998]

New York Rangers Franchise Mode

2018-2019 NHL Season

Preview

~ Salary Cap is on.
~ No trading into Top 3 of NHL Draft unless I have a pick from 4-6.*
~ No trading up more than 5 spots at any other time during 1st Round of Draft
~ May trade into 1st round but only from 15-31. *
~ No signing Free Agents if they require ELC, unless of American Descent citing college hockey holdout.
* - Unless using player of overall 88+.

Spoiler: RANGERS ANNOUNCE BRANT KING AS NEW GM

After Jeff Gorton stepped down, the Rangers introduced rookie GM Brant King as the guy they've pegged to carry out their re-entrance into contending. Here is what he had to say:

The team is obviously going to be young and inexperienced, but I'm not expecting a dead last finish. We have a very talented group here, and if I have an opportunity to make this team better in the long-term during season, I will assuredly make sure it happens. I'm not coming here to say we have to bottom out to rebuild, we can build a new contender with what we have now, and with good drafting wherever we draft. We will bring back the Stanley Cup.

Spoiler: RANGERS LEADERSHIP GROUP

The Rangers announced that Mats Zuccarello, Marc Staal and Chris Kreider will all wears "A's" for the upcoming season. The Rangers traded captain Ryan McDonagh at last years Trade Deadline, and with yet another year of uncertainty coming, they felt it was best to not name a captain.

Spoiler: FREE AGENT SIGNINGS

The Rangers inked veteran sniper Michael Cammalleri to a 1-year deal prior to the season. The forward split last season between the LA Kings and Edmonton Oilers.

The Rangers also signed former NYR Benoit Pouliot to a 1-year contract. The LW played last season with the Buffalo Sabres. He last played with the Rangers in 2013-2014 during their Stanley Cup Final run.

New York also agreed to a 1-year pact with much maligned goaltender Kari Lehtonen. Lehtonen, a veteran of 12 NHL seasons, has played for the Thrashers and Stars previously.

​

Spoiler: FREE AGENT SIGNINGS

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Michael Cammalleri	79	36	N/A	C/LW	Sniper	66 GP 7G-22A-29P -3 ... 18 PIM (17-18)	1/$1.450M
Benoit Pouliot	78	31	N/A	LW	2 way F	74 GP 13G-6A-19P -8 ... 22 PIM (17-18)	1/$1.150M
Kari Lehtonen	82	34	N/A	G	Hybrid	37 GP 15-14-3 .912 SV% 2.56 GAA 1 SO (17-18)	1/$1.250M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Spoiler: ROSTER DECISIONS

King on Chytil: We, after having talked to the coaching staff, feel that Filip can really step in this season into our Top-9 and make some major contributions. We have the depth to surround him with some really good players, and we have the veterans to give him an example of what it's like to play in the NHL.

Spoiler: ROSTER DECISIONS

King on Lias: This was a tough decision. There wasn't really any room left in our Top-9 group and we feel that it's better Lias gets top line minutes in the AHL than 10 minutes a night in the NHL. Lias will be with our team at some point this season.

LW	C	RW
Kreider 83	Zibanejad 85	Buchnevich 83
Vesey 79	Hayes 83	Zuccarello 85
Spooner 82	Chytil 77	Namestnikov 83
Pouliot 78	Cammalleri 79	Fast 81
Holland 77

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LD	RD
Skjei 84	Shattenkirk 84
Staal 78	Pionk 79
Claesson 77	DeAngelo 77
Smith 76

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Starter	Backup
Lundqvist 90	Lehtonen 82

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

First Half of Season

Spoiler: UPDATE

Nov. 17th, 2018
After 20 games, the Rangers sit 2nd in the Metropolitan Division with a record of 12-6-2. The team has been surprisingly competitive even with their young roster.

Spoiler: TRADE ALERT

Dec. 1st, 2018
The Rangers, amidst a 3-game losing streak, shipped Ryan Spooner to the Maple Leafs for Andreas Johnsson and a 3rd round pick ('19). The Rangers also sent a 6th round pick ('19).

Spoiler: TRADE ALERT

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Andreas Johnsson	78	24	Med Top 6F	LW	Sniper	27 GP 5G-2A-7P +7 ... 2 PIM​	1/$0.790M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Spoiler: ZUCC SIGNS EXTENSION

Dec. 5th
The Norweigan star agreed to a 4-year deal worth a total of $22.0M. He is the teams leading scorer through 28 games.

Spoiler: ZUCC SIGNS EXTENSION

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Ext. Years/AAV
Mats Zuccarello	85	31	N/A	RW	Playmaker	28 GP 13G-12A-25P +7 ... 6 PIM​	4/$5.500M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

The Rangers also claimed 23-year old defenseman Steve Santini off waivers from divisional rivals the New Jersey Devils. He will join the Hartford Wolf Pack in the AHL.

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Steve Santini	76	23	Med Top 6D	D	Defensive D	2 GP 0G-0A-0P -2 ... 0 PIM (18-19 NHL)​	3/$1.415M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Spoiler: TRADE ALERT

Dec. 8th, 2018
The New York Rangers have moved yet another piece amidst what is now a 4-game losing streak. Vladislav Namestnikov, acquired at last years deadline, has been shipped to Boston for prospect Zachary Senyshyn and a 2nd round pick ('19).

Spoiler: TRADE ALERT

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Zachary Senyshyn	72	21	Low Top 6F	RW	Sniper	23 GP 3G-7A-10P -3 ... 0 PIM (AHL)​	2/$0.925M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Lias Andersson has been called up to the NHL.

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Lias Andersson	76	20	Med Top 6F	C	2 way F	24 GP 8G-11A-19P +3 ... 2 PIM (AHL)​	3/$0.895M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LW	C	RW
Kreider 83	Zibanejad 85	Buchnevich 83
Johnsson 78	Chytil 77	Zuccarello 85
Vesey 79	Andersson 76	Hayes 83
Pouliot 78	Cammalleri 79	Fast 81
Holland 77

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LD	RD
Skjei 84	DeAngelo 77
Claesson 77	Shattenkirk 84
Staal 78	Pionk 79
Smith 76

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Starter	Backup
Lundqvist 90	Lehtonen 82

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Spoiler: LUNDQVIST INJURED

Jan. 6th, 2019
Henrik Lundqvist pulled his hamstring and will be out 2-3 weeks.

Aleksandar Georgiev has been called up in his absence.

Spoiler: LUNDQVIST INJURED

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Aleksandar Georgiev	78	22	Med Fringe Starter	G	Hybrid	21 GP 16-3-2 .923 SV% 2.00 GAA 2 SO (AHL)​	2/$0.790M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Record	Home	Away	GFPG	GAPG	PP%	PK%	Division	Conference	League	Playoffs?
19-17-5	10-7-4	9-10-1	2.61 (T-14th)	2.41 (T-7th)	14.8% (T-26th)	90.2% (1st)	6th	10th	20th	No.

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

​

Goalie	Record	SV%	GAA	SO
Henrik Lundqvist	16-15-3	.918	2.41	3
Kari Lehtonen	3-2-2	.940	1.84	1

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Quick Hits
~ Henrik Lundqvist is performing admirably, but Kari Lehtonen is superb in his limited action. With Lundqvist injury, Lehtonen will likely rasie trade value.

Player	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM
Kevin Shattenkirk	41	5	20	25	+9	8
Brady Skjei	40	1	13	14	-1	16
Tony DeAngelo	41	3	5	8	-2	2
Marc Staal	41	2	3	5	-2	22
Neal Pionk	41	1	3	4	-8	4
Frederik Claesson	41	1	1	2	+1	20
Brendan Smith	1	0	0	0	-1	2

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Quick Hits
~ Kevin Shattenkirk is performing great in his first full season without injury.
~ Brady Skjei's offensvie production is worrisome.

Player	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM
Mats Zuccarello	41	19	16	35	+5	6
Mika Zibanejad	41	10	18	28	+1	28
Chris Kreider	41	7	20	27	+5	28
Kevin Hayes	41	8	16	24	+5	16
Pavel Buchnevich	41	7	16	23	+1	8
Andreas Johnsson	41 (14)	6 (1)	10 (8)	16 (9)	+5 (-2)	4 (2)
Filip Chytil	41	7	8	15	+3	2
Jimmy Vesey	41	9	4	13	+6	6
Michael Cammalleri	41	5	8	13	-15	6
Jesper Fast	41	6	3	9	-16	2
Lias Andersson	13	2	6	8	+1	2
Benoit Pouliot	29	2	3	5	-11	6
Peter Holland	12	1	0	1	-5	0

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Quick Hits
~ Mats Zuccarello is a forced to be reckoned with this season.
~ Filip Chytil has taken longer than expected to adjust to NHL
~ Mid-season additions Lias Andersson and Andreas Johnsson have been surprising contibutors.

Spoiler: WOLF PACK UPDATE

The Hartford Wolf Pack own a record of 23-11-3 and sit 3rd in the AHL. It remains to be seen how they will perform without their All-Star goaltender Aleksandar Georgiev, but if the offense, led by Ville Meskanen and his 27 points (30 games), can piCK up the slack they should be able to survive the month.

Second Half of Season

LW	C	RW
Johnsson 78	Zibanejad 85	Buchnevich 83
Kreider 83	Chytil 78	Zuccarello 85
Vesey 79	Andersson 76	Hayes 83
Pouliot 78	Cammalleri 79	Fast 81
Holland 77

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LD	RD
Skjei 84	Shattenkirk 84
Staal 78	Pionk 79
Claesson 77	DeAngelo 77
Smith 76

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Starter	Backup
Lehtonen 82	Georgiev 78 Lundqvist*​

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Spoiler: TRADE ALERT

Jan. 22nd, 2019
The Rangers shipped out yet another key player in their realization that this season was not going to be a playoff year. Kevin Hayes was sent to the Nashville Predators in exchange for their 2019 1st round pick and prospect Yakov Trenin. Trenin, 22, will join the Rangers AHL affiliate.

Spoiler: TRADE ALERT

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Yakov Trenin	70	22	Low Top 9F	F	2 way F	43 GP ^g-15A-21P +5 ... 8 PIM (AHL)​	2/$0.795M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Matt Beleskey has been called up from the AHL.

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Matt Beleskey	76	30	N/A	W	Grinder	42 GP 8G-19A-27P +1 ... 41 PIM (AHL)​	2/$3.800M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LW	C	RW
Kreider 83	Zibanejad 85	Zuccarello 85
Vesey 79	Chytil 78	Buchnevich 83
Johnsson 78	Andersson 76	Fast 81
Pouliot 78	Cammalleri 79	Beleskey 76
Holland 77

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LD	RD
Skjei 84	Shattenkirk 84
Staal 78	Pionk 79
Claesson 77	DeAngelo 78
Smith 76

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Starter	Backup
Lundqvist 90	Lehtonen 82

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Trade Deadline

The TRADECENTRE broadcast team:
Host: James Duthie
Trade Breaker Desk: Bob McKenzie, Darren Dreger, Pierre LeBrun, and Gord Miller
Instant Analysis Panel: Ray Ferraro, Jeff O’Neill, Dave Poulin, Martin Biron, Pierre McGuire
Trade Bait: Craig Button
Deadline Panel: Jamie McLennan, Aaron Ward

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Duthie: We here at TSN would like to welcome everyone to yet another edition of our Trade Deadline show. We've already got a move to announce so were going to get right into it.

McKenzie: The Rangers have packaged Cammalleri with a 3rd and 5th round picks in 2020 and sent him to San Jose for a 2nd round pick in the upcoming Draft. Michael Cammalleri will now be joining his 7th NHL club.

O'Neill: I really like this trade for the Rangers guys. They turned a Free Agent signing and a couple 50/50 draft picks into a 2nd round choice. Even making that switch from the 3rd to 2nd round gives them that much more of a chance at finding NHL talent there.

Dreger: I've got another move to announce. The Rangers have sent Kari Lehtonen to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for a 3rd round pick in 2020 and prospect Mitch Stephens. The've called up Marek Mazanec and Cody McLeod from the AHL in a corresponding move.

Ferraro: This is a bit odd. Yes, Lehtonen raised his trade value with a stellar performance so far this season, but Lundqvist has already been injured and the Rangers still are in the Playoff hunt. It's questionable decision making on best on the part of GM Brant King.

McGuire: I have to disagree there Ray, this is asset management. Yes Lehtonen kept them above water while Hank was out, but they've got to get something for as many guys as they can. I would especially when playoffs are only a chance and not a guaranteed thing.

Duthie: Well, that's all the time we have tonight, we will see youguys at the NHL Draft!

Spoiler: NEW PLAYERS

Player	OVR	Age	Potential	Position	Player Type	Stats	Years/AAV
Cody McLeod	75	34	N/A	LW	Grinder	57 GP 15G-21A-36P +12 ... 50 PIM (AHL)​	1/$0.750M
Marek Mazanec	73	27	N/A	G	Hybrid	31 GP 17-13-1 .914 SV% 2.46 GAA 1 SO​	1/$0.650M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LW	C	RW
Kreider 83	Zibanejad 85	Zuccarello 85
Vesey 79	Chytil 78	Buchnevich 83
Johnsson 78	Andersson 76	Fast 81
Pouliot 78	Holland 77	Beleskey 76
McLeod 75

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

LD	RD
Skjei 84	Shattenkirk 84
Staal 78	Pionk 79
Claesson 77	DeAngelo 78
Smith 76

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Starter	Backup
Lundqvist 90	Mazanec 73

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Spoiler: 2 NYR D Accept Extensions

March 4th, 2019
Immediately after the Trade Deadline the Rangers have turned their focus to getting players under contract for next season. That started with 2 young defenseman in Tony DeAngelo and Neal Pionk.

Spoiler: 2 NYR D Accept Extensions

Tony DeAngelo	78	23	Low Top 4D	D	Offensive D	65 GP 6G-7A-13P -1 ... 6 PIM​	3/$1.100M
Neal Pionk	79	23	Med Top 6D	D	Offensive D	65 GP 2G-4A-6P -12 ... 4 PIM​	2/$1.650M

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Spoiler: PLAYOFF NEWS

March 23rd, 2019
The New York Rangers have been eliminated from playoff contention. This is the 2nd straight season the Rangers have missed the Playoffs. All eyes now turn to the draft lottery, where the Rangers hold the 10th best odds at the 1st overall pick.

Record	Home	Away	GFPG	GAPG	PP%	PK%	Division	Conference	League	Playoffs?
36-37-9	17-17-7	19-20-2	2.55 (20th)	2.72 (23rd)	18.3% (22nd)	84.0% (6th)	6th	10th	22nd	No.

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Goalie	Record	SV%	GAA	SO
Henrik Lundqvist	23-26-5	.909	2.69	3
Marek Mazanec	3-5-0	.915	2.69	0

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Quick Hits
~ Henrik Lundqvist struggled as the Rangers failed to keep up with the rest of the league.
~ Marek Mazanec was fine after being called up

Player	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM
Kevin Shattenkirk	82	8	35	43	-10	12
Brady Skjei	81	4	29	33	-16	47
Tony DeAngelo	82	8	11	19	-7	6
Marc Staal	82	2	6	8	-11	37
Neal Pionk	82	2	6	8	-16	4
Frederik Claesson	82	2	4	6	-2	34
Brendan Smith	1	0	0	0	-1	2

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Quick Hits
~ Brady Skjei picked up his offensive play considerably.
~ DeAngelo emerged as one of the Rangers better D in the second half.
~ Frederik Claesson was great defensively, while the rest of the corps struggled.

Player	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM
Mats Zuccarello	82	29	32	61	-5	14
Mika Zibanejad	82	25	35	60	-7	44
Chris Kreider	82	16	39	55	+3	42
Pavel Buchnevich	82	16	28	44	-16	16
Andreas Johnsson	82 (55)	13 (8)	26 (24)	39 (32)	+15 (+8)	10 (8)
Lias Andersson	54	12	26	38	+3	8
Jesper Fast	82	14	16	30	-7	10
Filip Chytil	82	16	13	29	-10	10
Jimmy Vesey	82	11	8	19	-14	26
/////	///	///	///	///	///	///
Benoit Pouliot	70	4	8	12	-29	20
Peter Holland	32	4	6	10	-19	2
Matt Beleskey	34	1	2	3	-13	10

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Quick Hits
~ Mika Zibanejad proved to breakout as the Rangers #1C
~ Mats Zuccarello was dominant all season
~ The 3rd line of Johnsson-Andersson-Fast was dominant after being put together and will get a chance to rekindle that next season
~ Filip Chytil was disappointing in his first NHL season.
~ The 4th line was putrid.
~ Jimmy Vesey struggled and will likely be used as Trade Bait.

Spoiler: AHL UPDATE

Season Recap
The Hartford Wolf Pack finished with a record of 48-24-4, which was enough to win their division.

They were led by goaltender Aleksandar Georgiev, who finished with a record of 27-9-3, paired with a .915 SV% and 4 shutouts.

Leading the way offensively were wingers Ville Meskanen (22-49-71) and Vinni Lettieri (30-40-70).

Next Post: 2019 NHL Offseason and 2019 Preseason!​

 

[Clode]

Anyone on PS4 keep having your game crash while creating an expansion team? It's so annoying

Took me 3 times to finish my team, but once I got past that point it hasn't crashed since

 

[tsujimoto74]

Anyone on PS4 keep having your game crash while creating an expansion team? It's so annoying

Yep. Decided just to make the team before opening up GM mode. Still crashed a few times while doing it, but at least that way I could save as I went along so it eventually got done.

 

[Vasilevskiy]

Anyone on PS4 keep having your game crash while creating an expansion team? It's so annoying

I didn't have that feeling of wanting tp throw the PS4 through the window since playing Bloodborne.

Anyways, yeah. Just create it in the create team mode and save every 10 minutes.

 

[M88K]

Haven't had any crashes on Ps4 yet.

 

[Echo Roku]

Have not had a crash in create a team yet. Hmm... PS4, by the way. Some in franchise mode, albeit still uncommon

 

[Hansen]

The draft is so much more immersive, I'm really loving it

 

[M88K]

The draft is so much more immersive, I'm really loving it

would agree the scouting overhaul and the draft and phenomenal in this game

 

[Gardner McKay]

The amount of goalies you can steal in the late rounds is amazing, not to mention realistic as typically the best goalies go late, and first rounders are so high risk. The other crazy thing is the amount of low elite Russian snipers I've found late lol. They are constant. Finally I drafted this guy Rich Waters (5 foot 8 playmaker) in the 5, as my scouts said he was a gem, two years later he is 85 overall and pushing for a first line job against my 3rd overall pick from the same year. I love the draft and the late steals.

In this game I have taken a much different approach. I used to sign every prospect I drafted as I never really ran into getting close to max contracts in previous NHL games. I ran into that issue very early in this game so sans any sure fire elites, I don't sign my prospects for at least a year so I can see what I am getting. Those "Gems" though, they really are good. I also found a franchise goalie in the later rounds on a scouts recommendation.

I have noticed that their are a shit ton more DFD and TWD than their are OFD.

 

[Panthaz89]

In this game I have taken a much different approach. I used to sign every prospect I drafted as I never really ran into getting close to max contracts in previous NHL games. I ran into that issue very early in this game so sans any sure fire elites, I don't sign my prospects for at least a year so I can see what I am getting. Those "Gems" though, they really are good. I also found a franchise goalie in the later rounds on a scouts recommendation.

I have noticed that their are a **** ton more DFD and TWD than their are OFD.

I've seen a guy drop from 1 to 3 in the rankings and be considered a gem I traded up from 9 with along with 2 top 4 D prospects that I drafted 9th and 19th the previous year in order to move up and get him.

 

[Gardner McKay]

I've seen a guy drop from 1 to 3 in the rankings and be considered a gem I traded up from 9 with along with 2 top 4 D prospects that I drafted 9th and 19th the previous year in order to move up and get him.

Was it worth it?

 

[Dicdonya]

Im enjoying the game, drafting and scouting overhaul were great, really love being able to actually find useful players without having to cheese the game to get first round pick. Also love that I can set and forget with the scouts, or micro manage when I want.

Skating engine feels great to me too. I have not bought a game since nhl 16, so not sure how much is actually new from last years game, but feels really responsive, and the collision physics feel great. I love that you can actually bump someone off the puck, and I have had several legit feeling battles for a loose puck. My shooting is waaay off though now, not sure if its the new engine or a slider change.

The biggest gripe I had so far, was fog of war. I love the idea of it, really I do, but there needs to be a way to shut it off for NHL players only. It is moronic that I cannot see someone like Joe Thornton's complete player profile when he becomes a free agent, or I am trying to trade for him. Fog of war is cool for prospects, and maybe even include players who have not reached like 80 games in their career yet. Veteran NHLers however should not be hidden in any way.

Oh yeah and no crashes yet, on PS4, I have only created one team though.

 

[hockeynorth]

In this game I have taken a much different approach. I used to sign every prospect I drafted as I never really ran into getting close to max contracts in previous NHL games. I ran into that issue very early in this game so sans any sure fire elites, I don't sign my prospects for at least a year so I can see what I am getting. Those "Gems" though, they really are good. I also found a franchise goalie in the later rounds on a scouts recommendation.

I have noticed that their are a **** ton more DFD and TWD than their are OFD.

I did the same thing until now aswell.

 

[Hockey Rush]

Does anyone have any "rules" they place on themselves in franchise mode to make it more realistic? IE only doing deals that match trade blocks, hard trade difficulty, Only do deals with teams who ask you about a player? etc etc. I'm trying to make my franchise mode feel more "real". Please let me know any tips, tricks, or rules you like to set for yourself to make it feel "real".