No acknowledgement from EA...stick lift.

Look, I get the anger.  There is a lot to be frustrated about in this year's iteration of the game (I am complaining in many threads on here).  That being said, we need to be fair about criticism so that there is a real back and forth.  EA acknowledged stick lift is broken previously and in fact again before/around same time (the stamp is close) you posted this:

NHL 26 1.8 Patch Notes | EA Forums - 13435115

Yes but leaving it broken isn't fair for what we consumers had to pay for. It's a full priced game left at a half-finished standard. I don't see any gaming company ever leaving things broken in their gameplay... even games like BF1 have issues but are addressed. It makes me curious why EA NHL doesn't when they have a way bigger development team than previous years when Ben Ross was around. Even himself would have these problems fixed asap. 

Your point here I agree with 100%.  I am really disappointed with the amount of actual gameplay and bug-fixing updates this year.  For NHL 24 there was a good amount of back and forth on these boards as well as substantive updates to the game.  Part of it may be because they had implemented the Pressure System and needed to tune it.  But then the number of updates dropped for NHL 25, and now a lot of the complaints we have in 26 are looking like they will remain unaddressed.  That part is frustrating as the game is in a broken state right now, I don't want to wait for it to be fixed next iteration.

Modulater83 wrote:

the game is in a broken state right now

No it's not. EA has acknowledged the issue surrounding stick lifts (EA_Aljo posted in another thread about it). 

This doesn't mean the game is in a 'broken' state. It just means the stick lift mechanic isn't entirely tuned to the majority's liking. 

Well, if it is not like the majority that paid for it thinks it should be and EA acknowledges that, it may well be called in a broken state.

Appreciate the feedback. Thank you. Would you be able to elaborate on this:

That part is frustrating as the game is in a broken state right now

There of course are issues with the game, but I haven't come across anything yet that would classify it as broken. That would mean it's in an unplayable state. With the exception of some players crashing frequently on XBOX, I'm really not aware of anything that makes the game broken. It would be good to know what is putting the game into that state for you.

Disagree. The number of bugs that persist including ones that effect lobbies and matchmaking, the number of overdue gameplay fixes that have been acknowledged, the lack of tuning and the messaging shifting to "Unfortunately, I don't think it will be addressed in NHL 26".  To me it adds up to a broken game.  I go into every game session expecting to have a failed matchmaking, one of my teammates having to dashboard out, an inexplicable short side goal let in by the goalie.  I love hockey and I love meeting up with my friends so I am still here. If you prefer a different label to broken, this game is in a sorry state and it looks like it will not be improved upon in this iteration.

As for this part...

(EA_Aljo posted in another thread about it). 

I literally said the same thing a few posts up.  I agree there.

Thanks Aljo, I touched on it a bit in my response to Kid, but in terms of literally broken, I go into every EASHL play session expecting matchmaking/server bugs because we frequently come across them.  We usually see at least one but usually more than one of these per night:

• One or more of our players dropping right as the game loads (forcing us to back out).
• Entire team gets kicked in a "Game failed to load" message error.
• The matchmaking lobby hanging at certain points where it just won't find a match no matter how long we search and we have to all back out of the lobby before it will find a match again.
• The captain getting stuck trying to cancel a game search and their game hanging forcing them to dashboard close out in order to do anything.
• Desync issues where all players simultaneously in game only sees themselves moving and all other teammates and opponents standing still.

This doesn't cover the actual gameplay fixes I'd like to see, but I am sure you have heard em all already.

 I go into every game session expecting to have a failed matchmaking, one of my teammates having to dashboard out

If this is happening in every single game for everyone, that would mean the game is broken. That's just not the case. Yes, I've experienced lobby/matchmaking errors. They're frustrating. Thankfully, we can back out, restart the game and we're good to go. It's absolutely frustrating when it happens though. I feel ya there.

an inexplicable short side goal let in by the goalie.

Short side goals are a part of the sport. This does not mean the game is broken. They can also be defended.

the number of overdue gameplay fixes that have been acknowledged

I totally understand how frustrating it is when issues aren't addressed during a game's lifecycle. With a game as incredibly complicated as NHL, making one small change can drastically effect other areas that would be even more annoying to deal with. Which is why in many cases, issues that effect gameplay mechanics often need to wait for a future game. 

"Unfortunately, I don't think it will be addressed in NHL 26".  To me it adds up to a broken game.

I'm trying to acknowledge the feedback and set expectations. The reality is that it's now almost June. We typically are done with gameplay updates and tuners by now. I'd rather be up front about that than keep everyone hoping, for example, that LT'ing and stick lifts are going to be addressed in 26. Again, these are more complicated issues. I have said it many times, if they were easy to fix, they would have been done.

this game is in a sorry state and it looks like it will not be improved upon in this iteration.

My friends and I really have very few issues. We win more than we lose, poke checks are weak, but they work, we're not constantly getting sniped on the short side, LT'ing is very annoying, but we deal with it. I do absolutely hate truculence and late hits. That bothers me more than anything else. Still though, in the majority of games against players abusing these, we win. No, that doesn't mean it's ok. It means we're having fun though and that's the goal of the game. In the end, more fun is had than not. Of course, fun is subjective and it's obvious that's not the case for you. In no way am I saying all's well though. I just don't think the game is in a sorry state. Yes, there's a lot that needs to be addressed. I'm fully in agreement with you there. I know it's sounding old, but we are aware of the community's concerns. There just isn't anything we can share on what's coming at this time. 

Edit: I just saw your other response and wanted to address it here.

• One or more of our players dropping right as the game loads (forcing us to back out).
• Entire team gets kicked in a "Game failed to load" message error.
• The matchmaking lobby hanging at certain points where it just won't find a match no matter how long we search and we have to all back out of the lobby before it will find a match again.
• The captain getting stuck trying to cancel a game search and their game hanging forcing them to dashboard close out in order to do anything.
• Desync issues where all players simultaneously in game only sees themselves moving and all other teammates and opponents standing still.

• One or more of our players dropping right as the game loads (forcing us to back out).

Make sure nobody makes any loadout changes or moves to a different tab once matchmaking has started. Everyone just be completely ready to go BEFORE matchmaking starts.  That will help avoid this.

• Entire team gets kicked in a "Game failed to load" message error.

This most likely has to do with the above. If someone drops, you need to reset the lobby. Just have everyone either back out to the main menu and reload WoC or completely exit out of NHL 26 and restart.

• The matchmaking lobby hanging at certain points where it just won't find a match no matter how long we search and we have to all back out of the lobby before it will find a match again.

Yep. Had this one happen too. It sucks and it's annoying. Again, restarting WoC normally resolves it.

• The captain getting stuck trying to cancel a game search and their game hanging forcing them to dashboard close out in order to do anything.

This is another we've all experienced. I'd love to see it fixed.

• Desync issues where all players simultaneously in game only sees themselves moving and all other teammates and opponents standing still.

This is one I haven't experienced yet. I know some of you have though. If you can get a video, let me know. I'll make sure to get it reported.

It needs a little boost, but it's better than in NHL25. Just try to find better position and angle for it. No more stick lift spam fest as in NHL25.