NHL 25 MEGA WISHLIST

FRANCHISE MODE: 

Coaching:

• Allow for coaching to be turned on/off, giving the user the option to play without coaching. 
• Re-Work chemistry boosts on lines. X-Factors either have too little of an effect or none at all towards an overall boost 
• Coaching salary is broken with owner mode off, can give a coach any amount of money and they’ll accept. With owner mode off, the coaching budget has no real effect on your team. 
• Coaching style should be able to change over time. Should also be able to personally change the strategy of coaching style depending on the rate at which my team progresses. 

All-Star game and Olympics:

• Add olympics / all-star game to the mode. CPU can randomly generate the best players from each nationality and include them in a mini-style olympics / all-star tournament (can be turned on or off in settings). 
• Give GM’s the option to send or hold onto players in case of injuries. 

Trade Negotiations:

• Give the option to actually communicate with other GM’s.
• Bring back team relationship meter, but this time it will be re-worked due to negotiations 
• 3-way trading. 
• “Future considerations” option that can be used in trade negotiations at later dates (i can choose “future considerations” when trading with a team I helped in the past)
• Fixed trade values and higher requirements to dump bad contracts
• Teams actually tell you what they want 
• “Find trade” tab reworked. If my Med elite 22 year old is selected “No trades found” shouldn’t be something I see. 

Player Editing:

• More editing options with players while in franchise mode (overall, position, height, weight, play-style, etc). [please with this one, It sucks not being able to edit your players mid-franchise]
• Ability to full edit/customize players in rosters. Other sports games do it, find a way. 

Free Agency/Extensions:

• Ability to interview players in free agency
• Players have the option to decline you for any reason (location, team direction, etc) 
• Making promises to players (Come to this city and you’ll play on line 1C) 
• Salary needs a re-work. Players care too much about money. (One good season doesn’t warrant teams signing a 3rd liner to an 8m+ deal) [Yea, happens all the time]
• The ability to negotiate with players in free agency also applies to extensions.

Prospects:

• Generated Prospects become wonky in the later years of the sim (players stats and abilities start to randomly generate and be all over the place no matter the build). 
• Ability to develop certain abilities for players (if I want my playmaker to work on a better shot) 

No-Movement and No-Trade Clauses: 

• Add a NMC or NTC to your player when signing them. 
• Players may also give a 10 team no-trade list (you will now be blocked from trading them to that team)
• **All of the above can also be negotiated.

Injuries and LTIR:

• Allow for season ending injuries (6+ months in length). 
• Add an LTIR mechanic into franchise mode for when this happens. (cap reasons)

AI GM’s/Coaching:

• AI coding seems off, too many GM’s trading for players they don’t need. Teams will trade for/sign useless vets and leave young players with actual potential scratched the whole season. 
• Basically better player utilization

ROSTERS AND TEAM/PLAYER EDITING + GENERAL GAMEPLAY

Player Movement: 

• Allow users to move draft picks between teams in the rosters alongside players. This gives full roster customization. 

Player editing/Team Editing: 

• More editing presets (Unique/signature NHL player tape jobs, jersey sleeve roll-up, hairstyles, facial features, etc).
• Allow users to edit already existing NHL teams. 
• More arena presets + more in-depth arena edits (fun activities, vendors, customizable signs, etc).
• More customization options!!!! (the same 20 hairstyles have been in the game since NHL 14)

Crowds: 

• New crowd sounds/atmosphere noises. Current crowd sounds have gone stale. 
• Literally just walk into an NHL arena and record the audio

Tournament Winning Celebrations: 

• Stanley Cup celebration needs a re-work. Doesn’t really feel like you’ve just won the cup.
• Give users the ability to skate around with the cup after winning. 

Outdoor Games and Winter Classic:

• For normal quick play and modes like franchise mode or season mode. 

BE A PRO 

Communication & Dialogue: 

• Complete dialogue overhaul. The dialogue does not feel like I’m talking to a human and needs to be brought back into this day and age.
• Dialogue during challenges is bugged. Many times you’ll get penalized for completing challenges or praised for losing them. 

Teammates and Coaches: 

• Teammates shouldn’t need to ask me to go to the art museum 4 times in one month, more dialogue options and more paths to choose through your career need to be added. 
• Teammate challenges need a re-work; My captain should not challenge me to make 5 hits if I am a 5’9 sniper. 
• Coaches should not be asking me to win the game by scoring if I am a 6’4 DF

Story: 

• Include a basic story for my player, including his upbringing, hockey career, etc. The story needs to feel more life-like.

Age:

• Sometimes your player starts their NHL career at 17. Don’t know why. 

Olympics and All-Star:

• Same concept with franchise mode.
• Could include conflict with the coach on the decision to participate. 

Player Development: 

• Allow more options for where your player is drafted 

• Could be a top 3 pick scoring 40 goals out of the gate, 
• Or a late 3rd round pick who has to grind their way through the ranks

• Allow for your pro to be sent back to the CHL, down to the AHL or over to the ECHL. Or, back to Europe as well. 
• Pro goalies should not have to start as a team's backup playing 20+ games if they are 18 and 68 overall, they need more time to develop.
• Make it harder to make the NHL roster out of pre-season if you are a later pick.

AI GM’s and Trading:

• AI GM’s trade way too much during be a pro, and by year 2 teams will usually be lopsided with random players. Isn’t very realistic. 

Contracts:

• Give players better contract options; 
• Long term deals/short bridge deals 
• Give players the option to negotiate contacts 
• Length, amount, NMC, NTC, etc. 

Leagues and Drafting:

• Allow players to be drafted from more leagues 
• Russia, America, ECHL, etc. 

• Teams drafting your pro should make the decision based on their depth chart. A team stacked down the left defensive side with prospects shouldn’t take your pro simply because they are the best available player. NHL teams take swings on players all the time.

• Allow for pre-draft interviews to have more of an impact on your draft position and story. If you tank your pre draft interviews, your draft stock should drop a couple spots because teams view you as having an attitude. 

Extras:

• Allow for users to participate in warm-ups. Maybe your player could throw a puck over the glass to a fan to boost fan likeness. 
• More options for retirement; becoming a coach, retirement ceremony, inducted into hockey hall of fame, jersey retirement, etc. 

PLAYOFF MODE 

Overall comments/suggestions: 

• Give users the ability to select which teams they want to control. Much like season mode, this gives users the ability to turn on injuries and call up players from the system.
• Crowds are very stale in this game mode to where it feels like another regular season game.