Been having the same issue and this is just ridiculous. I’m stuck on the fourth line because I’m not putting up multiple points a game with limited ice time to move up. Basically would have to play on the rookie setting and score like mcdavid to just get to the 3rd line.
My health is depleted every week and all my points have to go into health otherwise I move slow as molasses. Meanwhile my management, brand and teammate score are completely in the gutter and I barely have anything to spend on traits and xfactors. I honestly did not think this game mode could be any worse than pricey pond hockey but guess I was wrong. EA for once listen to your audience and fix these things.
Fix the slow menu lag for franchise mode while you’re at it. It should not be hard to do on next gen consoles. These are very minor quality of life improvements. I reluctantly bought this year because I held onto a small hope that it would be better but I wish I didn’t.