NHL 26 review: Goalie crease control, ‘Be a Pro’ mode helps EA Sports franchise remain as enjoyable as ever

EA Sports’ NHL video game franchise has remained the top option for those who desire a hockey game over the past few decades. The franchise came into existence in the early 1990s and has continued to become even more appealing in the age of next-generation consoles.

Since debuting over three decades ago, the NHL video game franchise has become even more impressive and realistic. It’s come a long way from the days of playing the game on Sega Genesis as users can now play it on Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X.

The deluxe edition of NHL 26 is a family affair as Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators winger Brady Tkachuk and former St. Louis Blues star Keith Tkachuk appear on the cover. The standard edition just has Matthew Tkachuk on its cover.

The biggest addition to NHL 26 is the use of ICE-Q 2.0, which is powered by NHL EDGE statistics. It’s a new gameplay intelligence system that “enhances in-game player movement and responsiveness.” It also provides hockey fans with a “more authentic hockey experience” to the gamer. 

In addition to ICE-Q 2.0 being integrated, there’s a few other changes in addition to the similar gameplay that hockey fans have enjoyed in recent years. Let’s take a deep dive into the positives and negatives in the latest edition — which I played on Xbox Series X — of the timeless hockey game franchise.

What I liked

Improved goaltending tendencies: The latest installment of the NHL franchise featured a fine-tuning of the goaltending dynamic, which was in desperate need of an update.

Goalie crease control is a new area that was added to the video game franchise this time around. Goalie crease control features save wall technology, which allows goaltenders to block shots in any way that could be considered humanly possible. In addition, goalies will also poke check more often and even guard the posts more effectively than in previous editions.

“They are the core meta of our game, keeping the puck out of the net. This year, they’re going to be smarter, more aware, and more reactive than they’ve ever been before,” NHL 26 creative director Mike Englehart said during a recent preview event.

In an effort to make the goaltending component of NHL 26 more efficient, the developers added 81 different new goaltender animations that help with split-second reflexes. Secondary animations are evident in order to try and stop deflected shots. 

Goalies are simply more reactionary to what is happening on the ice. For example, if a goaltender surrenders a bad goal, he may be more dejected or angry at what just transpired.

Simply put, the goaltending aspect of NHL 26 is much more realistic than some of the game’s more recent editions. Being reactionary is one of the biggest attributes that a goaltender can have on the ice, so seeing this added to NHL 26 was a breath of fresh air.

“Be a Pro” mode: In the current landscape of sports video games, career modes are extremely popular in the likes of NBA 2K, MLB The Show and NCAA Football. When it comes to NHL 26, that fact remains the same.

The “Be a Pro” mode allows users to create their own player and go through the entire draft process and beyond. Once the user creates their player, they begin by selecting what WHL, OHL or QMJHL team that they wish to play for. Long gone are the days where users are forced to start their careers playing pond hockey out of the gate when “Be a Pro” begins.

Following selecting your team (I selected the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads), you begin playing in the semifinal round of the IIHF U20 world junior tournament. After playing through the remainder of the tournament, you begin being interviewed in advance of the NHL Draft. Your responses will help determine how high your created player is selected in the draft.

After being drafted, you’ll play through the preseason where specific milestones need to be hit to stand a better chance of making the NHL club. If you fail to meet expectations, its possible that your player will begin his career at the American Hockey League level.

Throughout the early stages of “Be a Pro” mode, players will have realistic conversations with the coach, general managers, and even current NHL players. It’s a nice opportunity to get feedback on what is expected of your player while playing through the preseason and beyond.

Overall, “Be a Pro” mode is the cream of the crop of any sports video game, and that remains the case with NHL 26.

What I didn’t like

Form Score inconsistencies: There are plenty of improvements that have been made in the latest edition of the NHL franchise. However, one of the more frustrating parts of NHL 26 is the form score in which your created player is judged upon. 

The Form Score is a metric that can impact a player’s ice time, reputation within the team, and the coach’s trust in the created player. If your Form Score is fairly low in a given game, that player may not see as much ice time or even go as far as being demoted to a lower line. 

Much like it can be in hockey, it’s almost impossible for a player to log a perfect game, regardless of what position they play. There’s going to be instances in which players take a bad shot or aren’t able to get back on defense in a timely manner. Those instances will drive coaches crazy, so I find that the Form Score is an important metric to have in a hockey video game.

In NHL 26, there are some questionable grading scenarios when it comes to the Form Score. The grading of certain shots are extremely suspect on a number of occasions. For example, my created player was a bigger winger that is able to drive to the net. On one sequence, I possessed the puck with a wide-open shot in the slot and was dinged for “badly aimed shot,” even though the puck almost went over the goaltender’s shoulder.

There are also some discrepancies from a defensive standpoint. Obviously, forwards are not the last line of defense, but they are still relied upon in the backcheck. My created player found himself right next to the net in the offensive zone when a teammate lost control of the puck. As a result, the puck was carried the other way by the opposing team and I was dinged for failing to get back on defense on that sequence, despite beginning to skate back on defense as soon as the turnover occurred.

Obviously, there are going to be scenarios where a player is dinged for inconsistent play on the ice. However, these instances were fairly common over the hours that I played the game.