NHL 26 review: The smartest hockey game ever?

First, you get to start by playing in the semifinals of the IIHF World Junior Championship, a chance to make yourself a top prospect heading into the NHL Draft. If you’re a junior hockey fanatic like yours truly, you can also play in the Memorial Cup. Then, you go through the grind of trying to make your NHL team out of camp.

As a former player, the new cutscenes before the game, away from the rink, when you win the Stanley Cup, and more, bring a sense of realism that I honestly miss. The impatience you feel waiting in the hallway before stepping onto the ice, the intensity of the lights hitting you when you’re at the podium during new media scrums – you get to honestly act like a pro.

To become a true NHL superstar, you must be strategic about how you continually improve your abilities on a day-to-day basis. On top of that, it’s not as easy to light the lamp. Even when playing on Pro difficulty, I found myself focusing on playing my position rather than trying to score a hat trick every game to maintain a high play grade across all fronts.

Also, I got wrecked into the bench in my first shift in the NHL…so I had that going for me.

The artificial is intelligent

Speaking of difficulty, the enhanced ICE-Q 2.0 has led to the CPU learning how the game is progressing in terms of flow. Sure, there are still tendencies and patterns I picked up on when either rushing the puck up the ice or setting up defensive coverage. However, when you think you have the opposition figured out, the individual players, bolstered with their detailed attributes using official NHL EDGE technology, find ways to exploit any mistake you make.

I used to be able to throw long passes up to a streaking forward in the neutral zone. While that’s still something you can do, don’t expect to have the puck after a defender reads the play and takes it away from your player.

All in all, the new enhancement to player abilities, particularly the intricate details on the expanded X-Factors, makes every player (at least on NHL teams) unique. Whether it be the wicked release on Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews’ wrist shot, the overpowering speed of Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid, or the physical, yet effective, style of Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk, each individual ability is even more noticeable from a gaming standpoint than we have seen in recent years.

Goaltenders play like goaltenders

I was a goaltender, so I am the biggest critic when it comes to how the goaltenders have looked and moved in the series since NHL 2003. I have been supportive of the strides EA Sports has taken in making goaltenders act in every game situation.

This year, 81 new goaltending animations were implemented for point-blank saves and poke checks. Those were noticeable in just about every game mode I played. No save on a deflected point shot felt the same, nor did the masked figure’s reaction to every failed attempt at the backdoor pass.

These reactions do tend to open the door for greasy goals. Goalies falling out of position, leading to an easy tap-in. I like the amount of honest action between the pipes. To the average gamer, it might seem like these are glitch goals, especially if a goalie gets beaten by a bad-angle shot through the five-hole. However, when you watch a real game, you see those same soft goals go in.

As for those of us who enjoy playing goalie in the virtual world, there was no change in terms of the controls. However, even when taking control of the nomads of the knotted nets, you feel more in control of the position than ever before. Yes, human error can lead to making the wrong move, but the new reactions the goaltender makes in certain save situations make it easier to play the position.

PWHL right off the bat

I was excited to see the Professional Women’s Hockey League being introduced in NHL 25. But I was annoyed that it took until December for the best women’s pro league to be added to the game. This time, the updated rosters, as well as the expansion teams in Seattle and Vancouver, are already in the new game, allowing women’s hockey fans the opportunity to start a new season playing as their favorite PWHL stars before their season even begins.

What I don’t like

Minor glitchy hits

Honestly, this one’s nitpicky, but when using the one-button checking system, there still seem to be occasions where a bigger guy will just annihilate a smaller player, even if the two are standing relatively still. When throwing a hip-check, you might still tend to see a player go flipping over a defender, even if the offensive player is skating relatively slowly.

Once again, not a consistent problem, but it’s something that slightly takes away from the realistic gameplay the developers were pursuing.

Stuck playing pond hockey

This might be yelling at a cloud, but it’s been something I haven’t been a fan of for the past couple of years, just because it’s become cumbersome. I miss the old days of EA Sports Hockey League, when you hop into an open lobby, you play at a normal arena. Even in this year’s game, unless you jump into a World of Chel lobby with a club team, you get stuck playing an outdoor game with guys wearing their outrageous drip.

It was cute when WoC was first introduced, but I think the concept has outstayed its welcome.

Final thoughts

Is it NHL 14? No. Is it NHL 2004? NHL 94? Absolutely not. However, the strides developers made in NHL 26 compared to the last few years to clean up the gameplay and truly give users the feel of real-world action are solid. I really enjoyed playing the game across the various game modes. I didn’t find myself fighting the controls or the glitches when playing a game. It felt like the real thing. The use of ICE-Q 2.0 with the NHL EDGE gives fans a sense of how players are doing, just like what they see in real-world NHL, adding another dimension not seen in the game’s past.

I found myself thinking systematically when trying to hold a one-goal lead, rather than just skating around with the puck to kill time. The intensity of a long shift with no stoppages felt exhausting, and I was the one sitting on the couch.

It might not be the greatest hockey video game ever made, but it just might be one of the smartest.

Rating: 84/100