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Hi NHLGamers! Earlier today EA released a gameplay trailer for NHL 20. Among the 'innovations' shown were: RPM tech 2.0, Signature shots, Contextual shots, Explosive transitions, & finally Goalie intelligence. Of the five innovations, around 2.5 have been already been loosely shown off by EA previously in the reveal a few weeks ago, namely the new signature / contextual shots, as well as some improvements made to the RPM tech which debuted last year. Anyway, the trailer in question is available just below so let's get straight into that... Per EA, here is the rundown for the RPM Tech Speed & Shooting as shown in the trailer: In addition to the RPM tech, they also released a "deep-dive" regarding Goalie Intelligence. Once again, this is per EA. NHLGamer SHORT TAKE The puck pickups have been one of the most debated subjects in recent years, although almost annually promised to have been improved, very little has actually happened on that front. RPM tech was an exciting and positive overhaul of the skating in NHL 19 and can be expected to greatly increase the flow and speed of the game now that it's being implemented in shooting and puck pickups too. Goaltenders will also receive some new tools to combat rebounds and crease bounces too - a much welcomed addition. In the end, it comes down to how well these animations respond to surprising in-game events. We'd expect nothing less than for our community to work out these kinks and provide some valuable feedback in order to fine-tune the end product eventually. Finally, we'd like to provide you guys an opportunity to ask some gameplay related questions. Eight of the EA Game Changers had an opportunity for a hands-on experience with the game in the development phase at the EA HQ in Vancouver. @Kenu as our inside man made the trip in late April and might have some insight to your questions. Shoot your thoughts and questions in the comments section below!

Hey NHLGamers, it's that time of year - NHL 19 full Feature Reveal! In the early hours of the morning (from a European perspective), at the NHL Awards, EA Sports dropped perhaps more information than usual regarding the upcoming NHL, detailing not only the cover athlete but also a whole host of features / modes in order to spice up the game and drive sales. Without further ado however, here is the official reveal trailer. The Cover First and foremost, we will begin with the cover athlete for this years upcoming NHL. P.K. Subban has been chosen to grace the cover of NHL 19, whilst there was some speculation regarding whether he was even eligible as he had appeared on a cover previously (NHL 13, Quebec exclusive), it seems the NHL either overlooked this or felt that this previous inclusion was not perhaps official enough? The Features Moving on to the nitty gritty of what NHL 19 will entail, and boy is it a lot, so sit back and relax because this could be a while. For ease of access, the main points chosen by EA on their website will be listed below: WHAT'S NEW In NHL® 19, play on outdoor rinks and journey from the ponds to the pros in new and returning game modes. Compete with and against 200 of the greatest hockey legends to ever hit the ice, highlighted by Wayne Gretzky. Powered by cutting-edge new gameplay technology, experience explosive-edge skating that delivers more acceleration, speed and responsiveness. OUTDOOR HOCKEY IN WORLD OF CHEL For the first time in franchise history, step onto the pond and compete in the EA SPORTS Hockey League, NHL THREES, Play Now and the brand new modes NHL ONES and Pro-Am. In NHL ONES, you and two other players compete in a 1v1v1 free-for-all gauntlet. Showcase your skills and creativity with no rules, no stoppages, and no limits. RPM TECH With RPM Tech, Explosive-edge skating enables more control over how you generate speed using edge-work and crossovers. With all new animations, you'll experience more responsiveness in acceleration, high-speed skating, and pin-point turns. SELF EXPRESSION Stand out on the ice with over 900 customization options from authentic NHL apparel to pond hockey lifestyle clothing from some of the biggest brands in sports. Express yourself like never before with thousands of combinations of fresh looks. Stay up to date with the latest NHL® 19 news and never miss out on gear for your avatar. LEGENDS HAVE ARRIVED Play with or against over 200 hockey legends spanning 100 years of NHL history and build your dream team. Superstars of today's game playing alongside historical figures of past seasons is a defining factor of one hockey. PLAY NHL® 19 Pre-Order NHL® 19 today and get three-day early access, HUT packs, Cover Athlete items and more through the Ultimate and Legend Editions. Outdoor hockey in World of Chel Seen as the teaser, well, teased it, it would seem then that starting off with attempting to understand what exactly "Outdoor hockey in World of Chel" entails would be a good starting point for the analysis part of this article. The trailer does not show the specifics of how this feature will work per se, however their feature list does attempt to illustrate what form it will take. It seems that the 'world of chel' will take place perhaps in conjunction with EASHL. To further cement this similarity between the two areas is the inclusion of two new playable modes, namely "NHL ONES" and "Pro-Am". NHL Ones appears to be a free-for-all type of game where 3 people can face off against each other at the same time against a goalie (unfortunately AI only from what information we can gather). An example of an NHL ONES game in action can be seen below. Additionally, based on their wording it would seem as though the beautiful setting seen above will be available in NHL threes, Play Now, EASHL, as well as the new mode "Pro-Am". Unfortunately there does not appear to be much information regarding this "Pro-Am" mode, however Polygon stipulate that it is in fact a practice mode. Rather curiously enough though Pro-Am is seemingly an online mode, whether this means EASHL now has a true practice arena / area again, or it is simply a place to admire the scenary is up for debate. Although, Gameinformer has tried to illustrate the purpose of "Pro-Am" further by stating that it is a place where players can "hone their skills against A.I before jumping into real competitions", potentially meaning that the NHL series may have a FIFA arena-esque minigame available to players prior to joining an online game. RPM Tech RPM Tech appears to be another attempt by EA to further raise the quality of the skating engine used in NHL. Note, this is not part of a port over to the Frostbite engine, as from what we can tell they will still be using Ignite based on a lack of information stating otherwise and from the trailer showcasing as much. RPM stands for 'Real Player Movement', any FIFA players amongst us will probably have a slight feeling of déjà vu as RPM was introduced to that series last year (Polygon). What this means however is that a host of new animations have been added in order to create a much more fluid and explosive skating experience, with EA anticipating that players will feel more "responsiveness in acceleration, high speed skating and pin-point turns". Furthermore, in an interview with Polygon, Will Ho (NHL 19's creative director) relayed that RPM is especially attuned at blending different animations together, in order to facilitate smoother transitions between the two. Perhaps most important of all regarding this new 'tech' is that EA claims to have "solved" a massive issue plaguing the last few NHL series entries, namely puck pickups and their inconsistent nature. In fact, Ho went as far as saying that "We’ve basically completely addressed this issue" (Polygon). Self Expression One thing that almost anyone will notice when watching the trailer above is the attire of the players involved, most (if not all) are wearing clothing unique to them, ranging from flannel to camo designs. This is of course the 3rd 'feature' on EA's list, "Self Expression". In an attempt to perhaps catch people's attention and add in something that people can grind for to unlock, EA has decided to add over 900 customisation options for your personal pro, in addition to this starting amount it seems that EA will be adding more options throughout the year to further raise the amount of customisation options. Whether this broad range of choice carries over into 6s EASHL however is again up for debate as little has been released regarding the overlap between the "Outdoor world of chel" and EASHL outside of shared personal 'characters'. Legends Have Arrived Now on to quite possibly the least game-changing addition, Legends. Over 200 players have been added, spanning across the 100 years of NHL history. Who these legends are however is again subject to discussion and conjecture as very little information has been released regarding this feature. It goes without saying perhaps that these players will be available across all offline modes, as well as Hockey Ultimate Team (as was the case with the legends inclusion in NHL 12). Pre-Order Options For select countries there will be three pre-order options available, namely: Standard, Legend, and Ultimate. Each come with their own differing bonuses, as well as cover art. (What "Hockey bag" means will be outlined further down in the article) In addition to these pre-order bonuses, there will also be special 'loyalty' rewards for players returning from previous NHL iterations. Previous owners of NHL® 16, NHL® 17, and NHL® 18 pre-order now and receive special rewards in HUT 19. 2 HUT packs for your first year of ownership, 3 more packs for your second year of ownership, and 5 more packs if you own all three. 1 HUT Cover Athlete item per year of ownership, Jonathan Toews for owners of NHL® 16, Vladimir Tarasenko for owners of NHL® 17, and Connor McDavid for owners of NHL® 18. 1 World of Chel Hockey Bag per year of ownership Note: Currently the varying editions are named incorrectly/differently on both the PSN & Xbox store, whether or not this error will be attended to is unclear at the moment. On the PSN and Xbox stores the Legend Edition is named the Deluxe Edition and the Ultimate Edition is named the Super Deluxe Edition. Extra snipets of information regarding 'The World of Chel' If all of this seems a bit confusing regarding how 'The World of Chel' (TWoC) will interact with the already established mode of EASHL then allow me to clear up some of this mess. If I was to have a crack at trying to predict how TWoC will actually play out, I would say that perhaps the best parallel existing in other games right now would be 2K's NBA series, where you create a character that will be available throughout most online modes and has the opportunity to be customised to the extreme. What this could also mean unfortunately is a quite sudden retreat back to microtransactions that were found in within EASHL on last gen NHL titles. This is evidenced by the inclusion of "Hockey bags" which are proposed to be used as a means to pay for gear to customise their personal player with (Polygon). It of course should be noted that players will still be able to earn 'Hockey bags' through winning NHL ONES games. In addition to this, you will also be able earn points / currency by playing any of the other three modes under the TWoC 'umbrella' (EASHL, being one of them). Furthermore, it appears as though EASHL players will still have to choose player types prior to starting a game (e.g. power forward spam). What is new however is that there is now a trait system where players can pick two to slot in to two very distinct slots, namely Primary and Secondary. Primary traits will be more heavily weighted than Secondary traits, resulting in more powerful effects on their player; additionally it seems as though you can choose to activate either of these traits mid game via new UI indicators (Gameinformer). In addition to this, Gameinformer also stipulate that there are "Specialisations" that players can select from that are typically context based but can in fact benefit your teammates as well as your own player (e.g. extra energy gained in the dying seconds of a period). To help players juggle this myriad of options, EA is reportedly allowing players to save 'loadouts' to quickly select a prefered build based on the opponent they are facing. GM Mode Last but not least, EA looks to have done a semi-overhaul of how scouting works within GM mode. Not only will you have the ability to handle amateur and pro scouts within your franchise, but the scouts themselves will have biases towards different regions of the world. For instance, one scout within your organisation could be excellent as discerning players within the Scandinavian region but absolutely pants at figuring out how good players are from Russia. All in all then what do you think about these features? Will the trait / specialisation system be strong enough to force more people away from the power forward, or will it just serve to power it further?

Good day NHLGamers, Hope you enjoyed our ECL 5 trailer - it has been in the works for quite some time. Be sure to share it and spread the word if you liked it. We can tell you that a lot of effort went into making it and while a great many people have been involved in its execution from start to finish (including of course our featured talent @Bjono, @pnordetun, @cHIIMEERa, @Hansulinho & @Dominointi who couldn't have been more professional during the shoots), no one more so than @LastMandalorian. From developing the concept months ago, to setting up the film shoots, to traveling around Sweden and Finland to actually film it - all the way through editing the material and picking the right music. Hats off to you, sir - a job well done. Hockey returns 133. That is the exact amount of days since the European Championship League was last in action. 133 days (or more than 3000+ hours) of waiting for this next shot at virtual ice hockey glory. It is true that while this years Summer Cup did satiate some of the community need for competitive gaming, there is nothing quite like ECL hockey. The fourth ECL season was a season of change for many reasons. A new system featuring divisions was implemented. Instead of one lone winner, three champions were to be crowned. As a result more teams than ever before chose to sign up; a trend we hope (and expect) to continue as the ECL continues to expand its reach. When the dust settled and the smoke had cleared after ECL 4, the NHLGamer "Hall of Champions" that already featured Nordic Blizzard (ECL 1), MUKIMIEHET (ECL 2) and X Factor (ECL 3) had been expanded to include Laser HT, Carlsberg HC and J P T J who managed to bring home the titles for Elite, Pro and Lite respectively. Furthermore, we got to see the first ever Xbox ECL with OHO SORI winning the title in 5 games against The Black Jacks. We think it was a good start and would like to support this community initiative of bringing more competitive tournaments to the NHL landscape on Microsoft's console. That is why we will also give you the opportunity to sign up for Xbox ECL 2! ECL 5 - PS4 While ECL 5 will be bigger and hopefully more competitive than ECL 4 it will not feature the same amount of change to our structure, something we hope will offer a welcome sense of continuity with regards to how much things changed last season. In short, this means the rulebook, the divisions and most of the things that worked really well in ECL 4 will continue to be implemented in ECL 5 as well. This also means that, while we did find the ongoing discussion and community vote concerning the ECL point system - mostly a debate between the merits of employing a 3-point system versus a 2-point system - interesting and balanced, we will not change from the current 2-point format at this time. We welcome continuous discussion on this topic as the ECL continues to evolve. Furthermore, we are sure that one of the biggest questions for some teams and members at this stage is "where will we play this season?" as the poll concerning if you should be able to apply for Pro or not turned out to be quite divisive. This has perhaps been the biggest question faced by the staff ahead of this season. The baseline we are working from is this: if you earned your place in either the Pro or Elite divisions last season, you still have the right to it. We will not be employing any type of forced demotion in either of these two divisions. In a vacuum, this means we already have our 16 Elite teams and 32 Pro teams ready to go. Outside of this "vacuum", the truth is that many of these Elite and Pro teams have experienced significant changes during the off-season between ECL 4 and 5. Therefore, if you are either a Pro or Elite team (based on how ECL 4 ended) - you need to confirm your participation in the division you ended up in last season. If you do not confirm your spot before the last sign-up date, that spot will need to be filled by the Staff. Read on to find out how to sign up for ECL 5 and how to apply for these open spots. Framework Regional restrictions: ECL is a European tournament format, however we do not necessarily exclude North American or Russian players. North American players are not allowed to host matches / be captain in the lineup, which means all games need to take place on European servers. This also applies to Russian players - please evaluate your previous connection experience against some of the teams participating in the ECL, especially if you live in eastern parts of your country (which likely connects you to US West servers). In case of severe connection issues, we reserve the right to exclude teams or players. 6 vs. 6 tournament: ECL is played 6 vs. 6 only, using the EASHL challenge game mode in NHL 18. Individual requirements: Each player needs to create an account at NHLGamer.com and create his personal player card. Roster requirements: Teams need to have at least 8 players to sign up. The roster cap is 14 players. Sign-up period: Teams can register until October 13, 23:59 CEST. ECL 5 Kick-off: ECL 5 is set to start on October 16. Rules: TBA Sign-up procedures There will be different ways of signing up to ECL 5 this time - the procedures are explained in detail in the section below. Generally speaking: New teams that did not participate in ECL 4 at all or teams that were relegated from ECL 4 Pro: Please read the "ECL Lite" paragraph below. Teams that were able to stay in ECL Pro, were relegated from ECL Elite or were promoted from ECL Lite during ECL 4: Please read the "ECL Pro" paragraph below. Teams that were able to stay in ECL Elite or were promoted from ECL Pro during ECL 4: Please read the "ECL Elite" paragraph below. ECL Lite ECL Lite welcomes any and all teams that did not participate in ECL 4 as well as the teams that were relegated from ECL Pro during ECL 4. As last season, there will be no limit to the amount of registrations! We will flexibly adjust group sizes to accomodate all teams that are looking to participate. To sign up your team for ECL Lite, we ask the main captain (C) only to go to the ECL Lite registration thread: ECL 5 Lite Registration You will find in-depth instructions on the procedure, including all the necessary details you need to provide - such as team name, abbreviation, EA SPORTS team page and possible name changes. Due to the fact that only 31 teams are ECL Pro qualified at this time - and other teams may be folding - we also offer teams the opportunity to apply for ECL Pro during the sign up process. However, ECL Lite quarter-finalists from ECL 4 will take first priority when filling up spots in the Pro division, which means only a few or no spots at all might be available for completely new teams. When looking at Pro applications, we will choose applicants depending on their player strength and other factors such as in-game 6 vs. 6 leaderboard results. Below is the list of prioritized teams: ECL Pro ECL Pro is our 2nd division and will consist of all the teams that were able to stay in ECL Pro, were relegated from ECL Elite or were promoted from ECL Lite during ECL 4. ECL Pro has a fixed size of 32 teams, divided into two groups. All the qualified teams are listed below: To sign up your team for ECL Pro, we ask the team's ECL 4 main captain (C) only to go to the ECL Pro registration thread: ECL 5 Pro Registration You will find in-depth instructions on the procedure, including all the necessary details you need to provide - such as team name, abbreviation, EA SPORTS team page and possible name changes. In case ECL Elite teams are folding, we will automatically ask the best ECL Pro qualifiers from ECL 4 to fill these spots, according to their playoffs progress (criteria #1) and regular season PPG average (criteria #2). You are not required to apply for these spots. However, you are required to confirm your attendance for ECL Pro to be considered for selection. ECL Elite ECL Elite is our 1st division, housing the very best 16 European teams in a single group. It will consist of all the teams that were able to stay in ECL Elite or were promoted from ECL Pro during ECL 4. All the qualified teams are listed below: To sign up your team for ECL Elite, we ask the team's ECL 4 main captain (C) only to go to the ECL Elite registration thread: ECL 5 Elite Registration You will find in-depth instructions on the procedure, including all the necessary details you need to provide - such as team name, abbreviation, EA SPORTS team page and possible name changes. Xbox ECL 2 To help in building a larger competitive Xbox community, we will host the second edition of Xbox ECL. The first season was based on a community initiative that started off with few individuals asking for a NHLGamer branded tournament taking place on Xbox One. Thanks to these members who contacted other teams on their platform of choice to spread the word, interest was starting to pick up, and the first season ended with a total of 5 teams. While this is undoubtedly a small number compared to the amount of teams on PS4, we know that plenty of players joined NHLGamer during recent months. And thanks to the dedicated players that were doing their best to set up the first season, we expect participation to grow in the long run. Xbox ECL 2 won't be based on the divisions format that is taking place on PS4, and instead will instead offer a league format used in Xbox ECL and ECL 1-3 on PS4 - however, our long term goal is having divisions on Xbox One as well. Framework Regional restrictions: ECL is a European tournament format, however we do not necessarily exclude North American or Russian players. North American players are not allowed to host matches / be captain in the lineup, which means all games need to take place on European servers. This also applies to Russian players - please evaluate your previous connection experience against some of the teams participating in the ECL, especially if you live in eastern parts of your country (which likely connects you to US West servers). In case of severe connection issues, we reserve the right to exclude teams or players. 6 vs. 6 tournament: ECL is played 6 vs. 6 only, using the EASHL challenge game mode in NHL 18. Individual requirements: Each player needs to create an account at NHLGamer.com and create his personal player card. Roster requirements: Teams need to have at least 8 players to sign up. The roster cap is 14 players. Sign-up period: Registrations will be open indefinitely until 8 teams have agreed to participate. Afterwards, sign-ups will be open for another two weeks to make for a larger competition. Rules: TBA Sign-up procedure To sign up your team for Xbox ECL 2, we ask the main captain (C) only to go to the Xbox ECL 2 registration thread: XBOX ECL 2 Registration You will find in-depth instructions on the procedure, including all the necessary details you need to provide - such as team name, abbreviation, EA SPORTS team page and possible name changes. Final notes ECL and its divisions format is in a process of continuous evolvement. When NHLGamer.com first announced the switch to setting up three skill-based divisions, our main goal was to transform the diverse EASHL landscape to encourage the development of true franchises. Thanks to all the dedicated players out there, this is already bearing fruit: Established teams are building a core roster while also paying attention to the plenty of ambitious newcomers in the NHL community. We see social media channels popping up on a weekly, if not daily basis. We see lots of new streamers on Twitch and other platforms, showing off ECL to all the NHL fans out there. We see allies supporting our project more frequently than ever before. We see how the community is evolving and shaping up to be a professional and organized force in the gaming landscape. This is something we will continue to support in the future. We believe that, even though we might see a few teams folding this or even next season, which potentially requires us to restructure some of the divisions, in the long run we will see a healthy and fluid framework for the greatest 6 vs. 6 experience that's out there. It's not our achievement. It's your achievement. We welcome everyone to continue this road of success. We welcome everyone to play with the best. @The_Alpha_Furyan & @gzell60 for NHLGamer.com Facebook (NHLGamer)Twitter (NHLGamerCOM)YouTube (NHLGamer Official) Instagram (NHLGamerOfficial) Twitch (NHLGamerTwitch)

Hey NHL Gamers, We hope you are enjoying the NHL 18 Beta as much as we are! If you haven't had the chance yet, you should check out the new NHL 18 trailer, titled NHL Threes Official Gameplay Trailer. You can check out the new trailer below: Campaigns, playable mascots, teams other than NHL teams... these all sound like good things for this mode in my opinion, but what do you think? Are you looking forward to getting on the ice with one of the mascots, or are you sticking to the other game modes, and if so, which one(s)? Let us know in the comments below! Until next time Gamers!

Hey NHL Gamers, during the NHL Awards and the Expansion Draft last night, EA SPORTS dropped the highly anticipated first news for NHL 18! And because we know you guys love polished, exclusive content, here is our full breakdown of everything we know so far. +++ 1. TRAILER +++ We recommend you take a look at the new official gameplay trailer first, as it will be one of the main sources for the remaining deep dive. Go check it out! NHLGamer thinks: "Likely one of the best EA SPORTS NHL trailers in recent history. 93 seconds packed with new moves, new game modes and lots of hype. Well done!" +++ 2. GAMEPLAY FEATURES+++ NHL 18 is all about creativity, that's why EA SPORTS added a lot of new deking mechanics for attackers to the game. Between-the-leg shots, one-handed dekes, back-handed toe-drags, heel drags, puck flips and and the ability to link moves together based on moment-to-moment decisions and reaction time allow you to show your skills like never before. For defenders, NHL 18 introduces an all-new Defensive Skill Stick with features like poke check targeting, extended pokes and controlled stick sweeps to cover zones and passing lanes to counter attack the best players on the planet. NHLGamer thinks: "All the new dekes and especially the new Defensive Skill Stick will step up the game to a whole different level. According to a lot of players, NHL 17 already offered the broadest and most advanced gameplay feature set of all EA SPORTS titles so far, and this is an addition that everyone has been asking and waiting for a long time. Thanks for listenting to your fans!" +++ 3. EA SPORTS NHL THREES +++ EA SPORTS NHL THREES delivers an all-new 3-on-3 hockey experience with bigger hits, faster action and more open-ice to create big plays, beautiful dangles and more goals. It is a mode inspired by fun, pick-up-and-play arcade sports games where you can play any way you want to, online or offline, co-op or competitive. EA SPORTS NHL THREES also features a complete single-play campaign that allows you to compete against different teams and leagues in a circuit-style tourney. Get ready to unlock objective-based rewards like new teammates, jerseys, logos and other surprises along the way! No offsides and no icing means anything goes and the fun does not slow down. Penalties even send you straight to center-ice for a penalty shot to score that crucial goal. In EA SPORTS NHL THREES, you determine the rules. Choose how many periods you play or what goal limit determines the winner. Gotta win by two? Your choice as well! The new EA SPORTS NHL THREES commentator will deliver more humor and fun to add to the unique energy and excitement of the fast 3-on-3 action. Brand new arenas, exclusive to the EA SPORTS NHL THREES will deliver more color, more special effects and completely unique on-ice designs that keep the games as fresh and exciting as the gameplay. EA SPORTS NHL THREES can be played online in Versus and Team Play mode to jump into 3-on-3 hockey on a team with your friends, facing three other players in a full six-player competitive online game. NHLGamer thinks: "Spectacular! EA SPORTS NHL THREES looks like an extremely well done remake of the original 3 on 3 NHL Arcade which was released on PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2009. Featuring a smaller rink, no offsides and no icing, this could turn out to be a go-to game mode for competitive players to fine tune their deking skills. May even be worth a #3on3ECL on it's own?" +++ 4. MORE FEATURES +++ The new Creative A.I. will now make use of all the creative deking and passing tools that human players do, which will allow for smarter plays up and down the ice. By using off-the-boards bank passing, lead passing and improved positioning, the AI will be able to create better breakout opportunities. And with the new Defensive Skill Stick, they will be your effective companion in the defensive zone. EA SPORTS Hockey League will now support full 3-on-3 matches, opening up the ice to get creative, pull off big plays, and showcasing true #skillhockey with all the new moves. The all-new Hockey Training Camp will help you become successful immediately by giving you the opportunity to watch real-life videos from hockey professionals that teach you the right moves for the right moments. Training sessions and challenges will make you a truly competitive player. A new Expansion Draft feature added to Franchise Mode allows you to create and draft a 32nd NHL team to shake up the league. Select the best players from across the league, or if you're playing as an existing franchise, protect your current team roster by setting your own Protected Player List. The hometown for your 32nd expansion team can be selected from cities all across North America and even in Europe - from Stockholm to Helsinki to Berlin to St. Petersburg. For the first time ever, you can now design your very own custom mascot in addition to the arena, the jerseys and the franchise logo. Vegas Golden Knights will be added to the game, including authentic rosters, uniforms, logo and the brand new T-Mobile Arena, seen in the video above. And if you need a helping hand or just want to show off your roster, you can now invite friends to join you in more modes, including Hockey Ultimate Team, Online Versus and EA SPORTS NHL THREES. NHLGamer thinks: "We are looking forward to the new Creative A.I., which will hopefully fix one of, if not the greatest weakness in NHL 17. The addition of 3-on-3 games to EA SPORTS Hockey League sounds interesting. We feel like it's another approach to get people more invested to the non-AI games found in full 6 vs. 6 matches so far, and it could potentially increase the user base in the long run. One thing we are not sure about: Aside of the THREES arenas, customization options and commentary - what else will be different compared to 3-on-3 EASHL?" +++ 5. COVER +++ This year's cover athlete is Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers. NHLGamer thinks: "We were expecting a Vegas Golden Knights player to be honest. Nevertheless, Connor McDavid looks hot!" +++ 6. EDITIONS +++ Just like last year, NHL will come in three different editions: Regular Edition, Young Stars Edition, Young Stars Deluxe Edition. The Young Stars Deluxe Edition will release on September 12 worldwide (digital only), and include these bonuses: 3 days early access 40 Gold Plus Packs for Hockey Ultimate Team (2 per week for a total of 20 weeks) Connor McDavid Rookie HUT player object Connor McDavid adidas HUT jersey Connor McDavid EASHL celebration 1 Rookie HUT player object of your favourite NHL team Returning user bonus: If you owned NHL 15, NHL 16 or NHL 17, you will receive a special jersey for Hockey Ultimate Team resembling your previously owned titles. The Young Stars Deluxe Edition will be available at 99.99$/99.99€. Preorder via the NHL 16 or NHL 17 main menu to receive a 10% discount (90$/90€)! The Young Stars Edition will release on September 12 worldwide (digital only), and include these bonuses: 3 days early access 20 Gold Plus Packs for Hockey Ultimate Team (1 per week for a total of 20 weeks) Connor McDavid Rookie HUT player object Connor McDavid adidas HUT jersey Connor McDavid EASHL celebration 1 Rookie HUT player object of your favourite NHL team Returning user bonus: If you owned NHL 15, NHL 16 or NHL 17, you will receive a special jersey for Hockey Ultimate Team resembling your previously owned titles. The Young Stars Edition will be available at 79.99$/89.99€. The Regular Edition will release on September 15 worldwide (digital and retail), and include these bonuses: 5 Gold Plus Packs for Hockey Ultimate Team (1 per week for a total of 5 weeks) Returning user bonus: If you owned NHL 15, NHL 16 or NHL 17, you will receive a special jersey for Hockey Ultimate Team resembling your previously owned titles. The Regular Edition will be available at 59.99$/69.99€. NHLGamer thinks: "The simultaneous release in the US and in Europe is much appreciated! Unfortunately, if you are from Europe and opting for anything else than the Young Stars Deluxe Edition, you will have to pay a premium. The 10% discount on the fully packed edition on the other hand seems to be aimed at hardcore gamers, and offers good value for its price." +++ 8. BETA +++ The NHL 18 Beta will take place from July 25th to August 2nd and gives you the opportunity to take an exclusive look at the new gameplay, EA SPORTS Hockey League, EA SPORTS NHL THREES and Online Versus! To sign up, click here. NHLGamer thinks: "Everyone was looking forward to the beta, and we are happy EA SPORTS decided to continue it this year as well. We will see you on the ice on July 25th!" +++ 9. TRAILER BREAKDOWN: YER' WANT SOME GIFS? +++ At NHLGamer, we are always saving the best till last. Here's a collection of some of the new moves, features and other stuff: How do you like all of today's news? What do you think about #3on3ECL? Tell us in the comments below! @gzell60 for NHLGamer.com

Hey NHL Gamers, The NHL 17 news keep coming out faster than you can say tic-tac-toe and today we're being served with an interesting piece on the new and improved Hockey Ultimate Team! You can view the trailer below: I think we can all agree that the trailer is cool, but so is the batch of information released alongside it. Loaded with new features, such as HUT Synergy, Dynamic Sets, Trading Posts and other cool improvements, the improved HUT seems like a very welcoming experience for both new and experienced players. Based on the footage we have so far, the new menus and the appearance of the cards themselves are a very welcomed improvement - superficial or not, it looks amazing! The below info is from the official website: Source: https://www.easports.com/nhl/news/2016/nhl-17-gameplay-series-hut

Fellow NHLGamers, You can tell EA is ramping up the PR-machine for the Beta release of NHL 17 because today we have a new trailer for you! A few things to take away from this EASHL-related trailer - The customization options seem limitless! Everything from jerseys to arenas to goal songs to scoring lamps... the list goes on. This is a sorely needed re-introduction to the EASHL community. - Customization options are earned. As your team wins and levels up, you gets access to more and more different features. - Perhaps the biggest reveal from this trailer; four new player classes! Let's take a look at them. Dangler - Already introduced in the later stages of NHL 16 but to those who left the game around spring, this will be a "new" class. Suited for players who performs with small, fast, shifty players. Probably modeled after Johnny Gaudreau of the Calgary Flames. Jumbo Playmaker - This one is for the playmakers out there who haven't been happy with the size and strength of the regular playmaker class. The regular class will still be in the game but this jumbo class (quite obviously modeled after San Jose Sharks "Jumbo" Joe Thornton) will be able to take a hit and still make a play. Hitting Sniper - Basically Alex Ovechkin. Enough said. Two-Way Dangler - This one is interesting because it seems to be a defensive class in style but with very good puck skills. Very likely inspired by previous NHLer Pavel Datsyuk (We miss you, Dats!). Anyway, that's that! Let us know what you think of this new EASHL-focused trailer in the comment section below! Later skaters // The_Alpha_Furyan

Fellow NHLGamers, Today we're bringing you the new trailer for NHL 17, titled "Control The Ice". Narrated by NHL series producer Sean Ramjagsingh, this trailer takes a closer look at what NHL 17 will bring in terms of net battles, puck pickups, goalie movement and celebrations. Enjoy: A few things to take away from this: - Net battles have the potential to make us defenders competitive in front of the net again. I can tell you it's been quite frustrating as an offensive defenseman trying to wrestle big powerforwards in front of the net in NHL 16. Giving the defender the option to ever so slightly lift the forwards stick could go a long way towards evening out the odds. This could of course also give the forwards some new looks, being able to spin off tie-ups to go for deflections etc. - Goalie animations are again a focus for the team at EA. This time, it looks like they've tried to make sure you have different options as a goalie, either by relying on positioning and "being in the way" of the shot or by relying on athletic moves and timing. Either way, goalies do look good in this trailer. - Better puck dynamics for smoother pickups and better pass reception. - Improved "hit targeting". - Improved pivoting, accelation and agility for skating. - New celebrations so you can be even more of a turd towards your opponents - always welcome, right? Let us know what you think of the new trailer in the comment section below! Later skaters // The_Alpha_Furyan

Hey NHL Gamers, As you may have noticed from our previous news article, EA Sports released a trailer for NHL 17 today. In case you missed it, we've embedded it below for you! We have already taken apart the first 'Vision' trailer for the upcoming NHL 17, and we made a few interesting findings - which we want to share with you! Please note: You can click on each screenshot to see them in full size! 1) Custom EASHL logos and jerseys are back The screenshot above shows an unknown team logo, which suggests it is a self-made one for EASHL. As it does not make sense to use custom logos with existing jerseys (licensing etc.), we highly expect custom jerseys to be back, too. 2) Customizable arenas Above screenshots show different arena designs with the same fantasy logo on the right hand side, which makes us believe that EASHL teams will be able to customize their own arenas to some extent. At a quick glance the screenshots may look like they are the same one over and over again, but when you look closely, you can see a difference in seat colors. 3) Tie-ups could return The trailer includes a longer snippet of 2 players motion-capturing tie-ups in front of the net. Considering they have been scratched in the PS4 and Xbox One versions of NHL 15 and 16, they could finally return for NHL 17. 4) New 'Trade in' feature for Hockey Ultimate Team The above screenshot shows a menu screen of Hockey Ultimate Team, titled 'Gold Coach Trade In'. The description says: "Complete this set by turning in any 10 Gold Coach items for a Gold Trophy Pack, which contains at least 1 Gold Trophy." We believe that EA created a new trade-in system that allows you to trade existing cards, which you draw from packs or bought off the auction house, for new packs of the same class. However, we are unsure what Gold Trophies are or allow you to do. 5) World Cup of Hockey is included We were hoping and expecting it would be in the game, but here is the confirmation - NHL 17 features the new World Cup of Hockey! 6) New celebrations The trailer concludes with several snippets of new goal celebrations, which means they replaced / updated some of the old ones or also added a few new ones. 6) New menus The game menu has received what we'd consider a major facelift. It looks very sleek, clean and what could hopefully result in a more smooth user experience; as we all know, the previous iterations of the menus have been quite sluggish to use. Apart from new animations or updated training arenas for EASHL, this is all we were able to catch. We will keep you updated with future developments about NHL 17, and expect major news to drop during the next E3 which takes places in Los Angeles from June 14 to June 16! What did you think about the trailer? Did you notice something we didn't? Please let us know in the comments below!

Hey NHL Gamers, EA Sports just released their first trailer for NHL 17, called "The Vision". You can find it below: We will be back with a trailer analysis shortly!