Issues with the AI "balance"

The in-game AI feels as though its consistently manipulating gameplay in ways that break immersion and fairness, tilting matches in its own favor. Instead of providing a fair challenge, these behaviors create frustration by undermining player skill and consistency. Including various behaviours such as;

• AI defenders frequently engage in consecutive shoves that escalate into clear cross checks, yet no penalties are ever really called—even when these actions could not be anymore exact on what the rule is for(cross checking and tripping are the seemingly most egregious offenders, countless times a poke has tripped me on or close to a breakaway and no call, let alone a penalty shot like it should be).
• Defensive AI recover far more quickly from contact than human players unless laid right out, and are seldom slowed down by actions that would impede a user-controlled skater or cause them to stumble in similar situations.
• AI opponents display abnormal, nearly instant acceleration to cut off problematic movement or passing lanes deemed severe threats, with no reliable warning or visible pattern for when this will occur.
• The AI abuses movement priority, intentionally maneuvering to block or mirror player movement, often actively bodying into and shadowing the user in ways that feel unnatural and excessively obstructive.
• Light shoves from opponents reliably knock the player off the puck or stun them, while forceful contact from the player has little impact on the AI under similar circumstances.

None of these behaviors “make the game harder” in a skillful way—the AI shifts in responsiveness or aggression with no consistent logic, making its actions not necessarily "unpredictable", but "enough to predictably ignore various methods to strip them of posession

• The AI’s skating logic is especially problematic: CPU players will suddenly skate full tilt directly into walls, abruptly hard-stop, then accelerate backwards with the same momentum they hit the wall with, especially when the user gains control of a nearby defender.
• Attempting to mix up defensive or offensive approaches—including feints and direction changes—has very little effect, as the AI matches every movement in perfect unison regardless of pattern or number of changes.
• The AI’s skating agility while moving backwards seemingly suffers no penalty, letting it perfectly maintain gap control and mimic player actions from optimal distance with no visible disadvantage. Lunging the opportunity a player makes a move or crosses an arbitrary threshold
• Rather than introducing fair errors or realistic unpredictability, the AI “compensates” for its rare mistakes by inconsistently draining player stamina or otherwise handicapping the user, which feels arbitrary and unnecessarily punishing or frustrating.
• AI contact often feels as if players are treated like + and - magnets; whether or not “magnetic” attraction results in a successful hit or separation is determined by the AI’s arbitrary decision of what constitutes an acceptable collision. Heavy hits rarely result in lost possession and sometimes several defenders are needed to stop a puck carrier, with possession conveniently transferring to nearby AI attackers afterward.
• Puck battles in crowded areas seldom feel authentic—instead, entering a scrum typically means unsuccessfully trying to shove opponents out of the way or waiting for a player to locate the puck in his feet and get a stick on it. Predictably, the nearby AI immediately anticipates this and your stick gets lifted immediately.
• While opponent AI routinely uses logical man-to-man defensive systems, AI teammates on the user’s side routinely fail to provide this same support, especially during HUT Challenges; defenders instead allow attackers to breeze past them repeatedly with little to no attempt at coverage or resistance.

A fair and sensible experience would involve AI behaviors that align with realistic hockey dynamics and give an equitable sense competition, without having to erode a level playing field. Physical contact should consistently impact puck possession and player stability regardless of which side initiates it and if minor shoves carry stun/slow effects on them, they should apply both ways, with both AI and human players equally vulnerable to momentum shifts, mistakes, and recoveries. Defensive AI should properly execute man-to-man coverage as an option for both teams that provide support and prevents attackers from repeatedly breaking through uncontested. Player skill and strategic variations—such as feints, positioning, and timing—should meaningfully influence gameplay outcomes, rather than the AI reacting with robotic precision or arbitrary stamina penalties. Overall, success should feel earned through authentic effort and less "luck based" feats, predictable hockey logic that rewards anticipation, smart decision-making, and adaptability, making gameplay challenging but transparent.