Line Change, Playbooks, & Penalties

There are so many issues with NHL 27 that I could write a book, but I’ll focus on the three things that are keeping me from really enjoying the game.

Line Changes: Somehow, this has gotten worse from NHL 26 to NHL 27. Automatic line changes rarely seem to work properly outside of stoppages. After two weeks of playing, I’d estimate that about 25% of the time the wrong line comes onto the ice, and at least half the time I can’t get an entire line to change.

I’ve tried dumping the puck, cycling through the line-selection buttons, and literally watching CPU-controlled players skate directly past the bench while exhausted - they still won’t change. Most often, two of the three forwards get off the ice and the third just stays out there. Cycling the line-selection button sometimes forces it, but managing line changes has become incredibly frustrating and distracting.

This was already an issue in NHL 26, but it feels significantly worse in NHL 27.

Coaching Strategies & Playbooks: Why go through all the trouble of creating 32 unique team playbooks and then not let us permanently select a different one in offline Franchise Mode?

You can select a different playbook before an individual game, so the functionality already exists. But there’s apparently no way to make that playbook your team’s permanent selection within a Franchise. What’s the point of forcing players to make the same selection before every game?

EA specifically promoted team playbooks as a major new feature and talks about being able to equip and experiment with different systems. Then let us actually use them that way in Franchise Mode. I don’t want to have to persuade or replace a coach just to change how my team plays, and I definitely don’t want to manually select the same playbook before every single game.

If we’re already allowed to change it on a game-by-game basis, just give us the option to save our selection.

Interference Penalties & Tripping: Since the latest update, interference penalties feel far too sensitive. If a player releases the puck a fraction of a second before contact, what looks like a completely normal finishing check is frequently being called interference.

CPU-controlled teammates are also taking way too many tripping penalties when diving to break up breakaways and odd-man rushes. I’ve already had two separate games with three penalty shots in each game because of CPU-controlled players doing this.

I understand wanting the AI to make desperation defensive plays, but the frequency right now is excessive. Between the increased interference calls and CPU tripping penalties, too many games are being decided by penalties that I had little or no control over.