Initial Thoughts on NHL 25

So as promised I am now going to speak on Creation/Roster Editing. Franchise Mode will come after I have actually gotten around to starting a Franchise. I did create a team. Little disappointed that nothing changed, with 1 exception. The new item they added was the ability to set the taxes and tax status on the team you create, which is nice to have now that this is becoming a bigger issue within the NHL. Other than that though, same logos, same names, nothing really to get excited about. I would have liked if this had been changed up a bit, with new names and logos. I was also disappointed that they did not add in any new leagues at all, which still leaves a wide swath of the Hockey world unaccounted for, including many great prospects who are in college, this is ridiculous, and before I get the licensing comment again, these licenses could easily have been acquired by EA had they put any effort into that at all, so once again, the large fan base who wants these leagues are ignored. Guess I will await Vasy's roster updates for the prospects. On the roster front, this also did not change at all. You still cannot really do much for players. players under 18 still cannot be moved where you want them, which becomes a huge deal after the draft happens, as you can't place the drafted players onto proper teams, as well many will be missing due to EA not including many leagues that contain top prospects. You also can still not edit player's ages, which is annoying when this would be a workaround for not being able to move prospects onto their proper teams, without having to create the player yourself, which then runs into the problem of the player you created still being  in the game as their own age at game release date. Moving these players around is a must, big let down on that front. 

As for player editing, I like the extra options for contracts, Big W on that one, though it would be nice to be able to have different contract amounts for different years, as that is how these contracts actually work. Would also be nice to have LTIR options, so you can edit players into LTIR if they end up there, rather than having to hide them in international teams to avoid these players being used. LTIR is something we have been asking for for quite awhile now. I know easier said than done to implement, but for realism it is necessary and an absolute must. 

Truly wish we had seen more changes on this front. When I get into Frnachise Mode, I will provide an update with my thoughts on that. 

What is everyone else's thoughts on these aspects of the game so far?