Finally, the NHL is back, both on and off the ice. No longer will hockey fans have to endure long, depressing winters without their beloved sport to help keep them company. This means new players, new rules, and for the virtual hockey fanatic, a whole slew of new hockey games for their favorite video-game system to choose from. Sadly, the lock-out wasn’t only damaging to the sport and its fan base, but it has also taken an incredible toll on some of the players as well. I'm fully aware that a lot of guys in the league will suffer some sort of minor setback, or depletion in skills after sitting last year out, but apparently, according to EA at least, every single goalie in the NHL has experienced some sort of head-trauma, and has completely forgotten how to play the game. Gone is the excruciating defense that made last year's offering unplayable, which now has been replaced by dumbfounded goaltenders, and a skate-freely type attitude on offense. Will these additions, or subtractions (depending on your stance) be enough to separate 06 from its competitors? Well, surprisingly, the answer is yes.

Much like every EA Sports title to come along, this year’s hockey game has a few new features that will help separate it from last year's game. Much like Madden's Truck Stick, 06 features the new Skill Stick option, which has now been mapped to the right analog stick. What’s the Skill Stick you ask? Well, to be quite frank and honest with you, an unnecessary, although not completely useless offensive addition. Now, anytime players wish, they can perform certain “skill” moves by tapping the right analog stick in the appropriate direction. I know this sounds cool and exciting, and sometimes it is exactly that, but way too often it turns out to be nothing more than a disrespect to the game of hockey. One problem is that the moves are preprogrammed and give you very little control over the shot itself, and a lot of the times you just press the right analog stick and hope for the best. Sadly, this usually results in an over-the-top 360 spin, or a fancy between the legs shot, none of which you need to be trying in any thing other than the all-star game. If I remember correctly from my playing days, just trying one of these moves would either get you benched, or punched in the mouth for showing off. I know the developers were trying to recapture the offensive glory from their previous games like NHL 94, but at this point in time people have come to expect realism, not something we witnessed in a game more than 10 years ago.

Luckily, you never have to actually press the skill stick button if you don’t want to, as the manual deke from a few years ago has now been moved to the left analog stick. This actually works out pretty well, and even though the left stick is also used to control your player, performing deke’s while moving forward is easier than ever. You will be skating your way around defenders and schooling goalies in no time at all, and unfortunately, this is one of the games major flaws. Like I mentioned above, the goaltenders in 06 have forgotten every ounce of technique training they’ve ever received. Just flinching at the goalies this year will cause them to drop to ice in a desperate act of flailing. Once on the ice, though, they have the uncanny ability to pull off some of the most spectacular saves ever witnessed in a hockey game. Heck, half the time the goalies aren’t even looking at you when they somehow manage to throw a glove in the air and stop your perfect snapshot. I understand why the developers did this, and it does indeed make for some exciting replays, but it also causes way too many goals to be scored. Usually just skating wide and then passing to the off-side winger, or center, for a one-timer will result in a goal, and only because the goalie dropped to the ice as soon as the pass was released. Don’t get me wrong, the goalie animations are some of the best we’ve ever seen, but when they come at the cost of numerous goals and wide-open offense, it’s just not worth it.  

You also have to try desperately to keep the computer from scoring an insane amount of goals on you, and in a very cheap manner I might add. You know there is going to be a problem when you’re forced to turn the shot accuracy, game speed, and puck handling ability all the way down, and at the same time turn the shot blocking, pass interceptions, and poke effectiveness all the way up, just to keep the score and pace of the game at a realistic level. So unless you deal with the sliders immediately, you are going to experience some very high scoring games, and I'm talking like 9-8, and 7-6 on a regular basis. The defense in the game is kind of a double-edged sword, though. On one hand, they play very little D once you enter the offensive zone, and allow you to skate freely around the net or when setting up plays; so getting the shots you want is never a problem. But on the other hand, the defense’s performance in the neutral zone, and during breakouts is much improved from last year’s version. Also, the checking in the game isn’t so devastating anymore, thankfully. Players are now required to build up momentum before they try to throw a check, or else they will simply bounce off the intended target, and take themselves out of the play. Hip-checks also happen more frequently as well, but this time they actually occur when they should, like when crossing the blue-line or entering the neutral zone. Sometimes you will even be treated to a player losing his stick or helmet after a big hit, but I would have like to see this more often, especially in the defensive zone.

Those of you who don’t like to throw punishing hits, however, will be glad to hear that clutching is back, and it’s actually quite useful this year. Though sadly, it just doesn’t happen that often either; and when it does take place, it’s the same repetitive animation over and over again. Believe it or not, clutching and grabbing along the boards is a very big part of hockey, especially while in the defensive zones around the net. I'll never understand why things like this are kept to a minimum, when other unnecessary features like ... let's say... the skill stick, are implemented from year to year. With EA’s competitors gaining ground, if not passing them, because of their “realistic”take on the sport, you would think that it would concentrate on making its game more lifelike.

NHL 06 sports the usual features from the past, as well as a few new additions that will keep you busy for a while. Dynasty, season, all three elite leagues, a new world tournament, and the free-4-all mini-game, which is pretty much a rip-off of its competitors, are all present this year as expected. You can also create your very own custom team, which is surprisingly fun, and has more options than last year. You also have more control when creating players as well, as the face mapping from the Tiger Woods series has now made an appearance here, but somehow just isn’t as polished as it should be. People who like to take the experience online will be glad to hear that playing on Xbox Live is available again, but sadly, not much has changed in that department either. You can, however, download the latest rosters, keep track of leader boards, and track down friends for head-to-head matches, but nothing too great or out of the ordinary, just enough to keep you happy.

Complaints aside, this year’s version is probably the best of this generation. The improved hitting, skating, puck handling, and goalie animations really add a lot of realism to the game. Even though it still isn’t the most realistic hockey game on the market, it is, however, the flashiest and the most fun to play. So if you can look past the brain-dead goaltenders, and the over-the-top skill stick, you will find an enjoyable hockey game, but only after you have dealt with these issues.

Gameplay: 8.6
The new motion capture animations for checking, skating, and puck handling really takes this year’s game to the next level. Although the goalies desire to fall down every two seconds does make for some exciting replays, in the end it only causes the score to get out of hand.

Graphics: 8.9
This year’s version, although only slightly improved, is the best in the series. The arenas are spot- on, and the player models look more accurate now, but for some reason a lot of the shorter players look kind of chubby thanks to the new scaling system.

Sound: 8.7
Standard EA Trax fare. Hard rock tunes mostly fill the air, but for some reason, I just didn’t enjoy this year's songs as much as the previous versions. Regardless, if Fall Out Boy, American Head Charge, and Pennywise interest you, you’ll be right at home in the audio department.

Difficulty: Medium

Concept: 7.7
I really like using the left analog stick for deking, as the reaction time is super smooth, but the skill stick was quite useless, at least to me. I prefer my hockey to be on the realistic side, and the idea of pulling a triple sow chow to win the game is quit nauseating to me, but the rest of the additions are quite welcome indeed.

Multiplayer: 8.2
Xbox Live, leader boards, friends list, nothing else to really say here, just good old fashion multiplayer fun.

Overall: 8.4
Many people will come away from NHL 06 feeling kind of confused, at least I did. I mean there is no denying EA when it comes to slick presentation, fluid gameplay, and topnotch animations, but its breakneck pace, and broken goalies will definitely take away some of its charm. Anyone who can look past these shortcomings, or who actually prefers the arcade style of gameplay, will be in hockey heaven; everyone else might want to look elsewhere for a more realistic experience.