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There is already build bans Builds are a thing that breaks the game when u can be 88 kg and be faster than a 72,5 kg guy it makes 0 sense U have played a lot of NHL and ecl's during the years so u know how absolutely stupid it is Atleast if u are a sniper 170 72 kg with 97 speed u give up your ability to help the team defensively, as a powerforward or defensive defensman u dont give up anything in this current meta

But... there are already build bans? I don't know if you've missed it or not, but wingers can't use PMD etc, that's a banned build

That would be a joke if there would come build bans also 😂😂 lets remember the true reason why we are talking here, it was and it still is the x-factors what are breaking the game, not the ban builds and things for favor of some people who wanna play with smaller builds or own style of game for example

Based on two game nights, I don’t really see much difference in the gameplay compared to the previous ability ban rules, except that goalies can’t pull off as many ridiculous last-second saves anymore. I like the game more now than before.

No abilities is fine My problem is the powerforward and dfd meta, makes no sense and dont know why ea did it this way for this nhl but a 183 88kg winger has 97 speed while a 183 72,5kg defender has 96 speed and cant skate faster than them? NA has banned these builds and i agree with the reasoning behind and why the have done it, it makes it more fun and enjoyable to play. Atm feels like everyone has truc when we are playing games and that for me is no fun.

So, we have now lack of creativity because we dont have abilities? Abilities mysteriously grow our hockey iq from Mackinnon (low) level to Mcdavid (very high) level? Pretty clear someones are going to pretend that this is something new that almost every team is playing with same builds. Then there is that turtle defence thing. Last ~10 years about 95% of teams have played that turtle defence all the time.

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Only what i can say about goalies - if skaters can use gold abilities, then goalies should be able use elite abilities and blue, because even without abilities you can see that game is realy bend forward to skater, and if they gonna play with gold abilities we will not be able to keep up with them. And for skater to cry that this is hard to score and boring its funny. Also i feel without showstopper my goalie is easy screened and if there is some traffic infront of net he cant hold pressure and work around it.

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You do have an excellent point, but the problem is the animations. You can only unlock certain animations with abilities, and you cannot do anything about it even if you have a sniper with over 90 wrist shots. It wasn't like that in NHL 25, for example if I remember right. It has been 8 days now and I've been playing quite much. The meta has clearly changed and it's boring. Think it this way.. let's say for an example like CS2 when certain weapons or movement or headshot mechanics are gated behind skins. Just like in CS2, where some players feel restricted because they don’t have the “right” loadout or gear, in NHL 26 you’re limited by abilities, not skill. Like Savi said, there are plenty of people who thought the previously banned set of abilities was just fine, even in the Elite Division. Almost everyone I've been talking to are saying something different and would be just fine even with only golden abilities. I know that the elite players especially wanted to get rid of the elite sponge but for the rest I really don't know. So I’m really curious..who are these people or this “majority”? It makes absolutely no sense.

The game does feel slower to me, which I'm chalking up to one or more of three things: 1) the stamina recovering ability is gone (although not everyone used it in the first place), 2) attacks last longer because people aren't taking as many shots from less than ideal angles, leading to less neutral zone hustle, and 3) I'm imagining it. It could be just the third option too of course.

Yea this i agree with, so i wouldn't say that the game is slow, i would say the gameplay at this moment is really really boring. We wanted to bring out the most skill from the players, but using a 88kg build with 97 speed is not that skilled. Just position yourself in front of the net and wait for the puck to bounce a couple of times before you have an open net.

Would it not be prudent to let the current ruleset - e.g. no traits - settle for a few weeks and see how things shake out before calling for additional changes or the reversal of previously made changes? Personally, I was fine with the previously banned set of abilities. I am fine with the current edition of no abilities. I'd be fine with just gold abilities. It's just: we're about one week removed from this decision. If we call for the reversal of any decision made within one week based on how a couple sessions for a few teams went in the span of that week, nothing will ever stick. We already saw this with the rollback of a previous decision made by LA with the banning and unbanning of the new traits. I'm not saying everyone should just swallow any and all decisions made here. But the #BanThemAll-movement has been ongoing for at least a year (or more?) now. And now that the decision has been made, we're immediately back to "Well, acktually...". I mean, hell... there are probably multiple teams out there across all divisions who haven't even TRIED this new ruleset yet because they've been on post-ECL breaks 😅

Maybe “slow” is the wrong term to use, but I agree 100% with Savi. Right now it’s about waiting for the opponent to make a mistake while sitting in a turtle defense because you dont need to cover all the areas you had to before, then going full speed and crashing the net off the counterattack. When you don’t forecheck, the opponent are making motivation carpets Allowing the golden abilities would at least bring something to the gameplay and it would also add more tactical plays and creativity.

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i would agree also, that without abilities game seems unfinished and wrong. goalies cant save shit that for sure even less then before. But seems that guys who comment this topic didnt even read what Sportsgamer wrote in topic. That you dont like something doesnt change the fact on what is based this decision.

The gameplay does not feel slow, since almost everyone is using a build with 97 speed etc. I would like to test this out, since i think it would be more enjoyable. 100% agree, and this has to do with the new meta, everyone is rocking an 88kg build with 97 speed

Yeah game is "playable" but not that fun anymore because of the lack of creativity and horrible shots. No matter how much points you are adding your build shots, they are just bad because shots are also builded around abilities. I personally do care much about abilities, at least gold ones. There has been many good points from people who i have talked with. Game tempo has went down a lot and many teams are just playing that famous turtle defence because its the most effective way to play defence atm without abilities because there is not any threat from far shots so why not. Every game feels the same force and turtle hockey, no matter which team you are playing against. Funniest thing is that like when there is no need to take care of far shots that much and team is defending tight, then some people are doing motivation carpets, just standing with a puck etc during the game because opponent is not coming to give pressure. Abilities (at least golden ones) would bring much more creativity and threats to gameplay and it forces teams to play defence much more active way than now. Im still curious to know like who is that "majority of community who wanted this awfull decision. There is plenty of people who has said like there should be at least gold abilites, even in elite division.

When abilities were in the game, you at least saw some people using smaller players and different player types. Now the gameplay feels so slow that you almost have to use big players and just crash the net to score. Overall, the gameplay feels much slower. It also feels like you score more often by simply crashing the net with big players than by taking a shot from a well-played situation. I think the gameplay would be much more enjoyable with golden abilities. All the tactical plays are now gone as you really don't need to defend shots from far away. Now its like "madden": hitting people, getting pressure, spinning in the corners and then forcing. It's still playable, but it's not that fun anymore. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if fewer teams attend the next ECL. It was fun for the first couple of days, but now it just feels like the same shit every night.

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I personally do not care much about abilities. The game is playable without them anyway. But, right now the game feels a bit like Madden. Every time a PWF and a DFD/TWD meet in a puck battle it turns into a car crash. I like hitting. Playing physical hockey is fun and it was already a big part of the last ECL season. But I honestly wonder if we are about to see some kind of tackling record in the next one? Everyone is getting beaten up out there. It is not hockey anymore, it is organized chaos on ice. Abilities will not fix this. The real question is if there are other ways to avoid the direction the gameplay is heading right now? Because at this pace we might need helmets, shoulder pads and a seatbelt. Just in case the next puck battle turns into a traffic accident. 😂

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