Be a GM tips and tricks

[leodido]

Hello all,

I'm quite a newcomer to the game, and I just recently started my first Be a GM game and I must say I'm quite lost.

I'm really not familiar with the GM side of things, I like watching games and play mostly but being from Switzerland I only have a limited knowledge of things like player trade and contracts in the NHL.

I made the draft with no real effort just choosing half randomly players that seemed to be ok. Also I think my understanding of the draft is not that clear, if I understand correctly each teams choose one player per round, based on their standings in the past season and playoffs results, then these players won't necessary play in the big team right? What happen with these drafted players and what should I do with them?

What I'm also looking for here is for tips and tricks about knowning which player I should trade against which type of players and other general tips about the game, maybe tips about tasks and such. Basically I'm pretty lost in what I should be aiming to do.

I must sound like a total newbie but I hope you guys can direct me in the right direction.

[jkra0512]

Quote: Originally Posted by leodido

Hello all, I'm quite a newcomer to the game, and I just recently started my first Be a GM game and I must say I'm quite lost. I'm really not familiar with the GM side of things, I like watching games and play mostly but being from Switzerland I only have a limited knowledge of things like player trade and contracts in the NHL. I made the draft with no real effort just choosing half randomly players that seemed to be ok. Also I think my understanding of the draft is not that clear, if I understand correctly each teams choose one player per round, based on their standings in the past season and playoffs results, then these players won't necessary play in the big team right? What happen with these drafted players and what should I do with them? What I'm also looking for here is for tips and tricks about knowning which player I should trade against which type of players and other general tips about the game, maybe tips about tasks and such. Basically I'm pretty lost in what I should be aiming to do. I must sound like a total newbie but I hope you guys can direct me in the right direction.

All right let me try and tackle this one item at a time.

The Draft

You are right in your assumption that each team picks a player in each of the five rounds. Now, there are instances where a team can trade a draft pick for a player. Say the NY Rangers traded their 2nd round draft pick to the Detroit Red Wings for some random player. Now Detroit controls that pick and will get to choose in the Rangers' place.

Who Should I Draft?

There are two schools of thought when drafting in the first round:

1. Pick the best available player you can get
2. Pick the best available player of need

I play as the NY Rangers so I went into the draft knowing I didn't have many pure scorers in my organization but I have good young defensemen so I can focus on trying to pick up a good offensive player. I believe my Rangers had the 21st pick in the draft, so try to pick a player who has a lot of those green lines next to their numbers.

The green, yellow, and red lines identify how accurate your scouting is (which you can upgrade.) Green means it's reliable and you can count on it, yellow means it's around that number, and red means it could be that number or it might not even be close.

My main focus is trying to pick a person with speed, agility, and decent wrist power & acc. in the first round. I want my first round pick to be a Sniper or a Playmaker, because they're more rare than a Grinder, who you can pick up anywhere on Free Agents for cheap.

As you get into later rounds try to pick players in positions of need. (e.g. need defensemen, pick one!) Don't be afraid to take a chance in the later rounds because most likely they won't amount to anything anyway, so it's low-risk high-reward

What To Do With The Players You Drafted

Next you need to sign them. Use some discretion here, don't feel like you need to sign those you just drafted. Finally, you can look at their final attribute ratings as well as their potential ratings in Offense, Defense, and Athleticism. Try to sign those with high-ceilings, with A's and B's in those categories (to find their potential ratings check their attributes and they should be shown at the top-right of the screen.)

Your top pick should be rated anywhere from 72 and up overall. I've had guys come in at 79 OVR and other first round flops at 69 OVR. But, make sure you look at the potential rating and sign the players who give you the best chance to succeed a few years down the road when you call them up.

Those you sign should definitely be given two-way contracts so they can be moved up to the big club and back down to the farm club without having to go through waivers*. Unless you have a glaring need for this player on your big club, in no way, shape, or form should they be on your club, they need to be on your minor league team for "seasoning".

Things to Remember

1. Scouting is important! Be sure to change up your scouting assignments, never trust the computer to do it for you. You can receive GM Points to upgrade your Scouting Dept., Assistant Coaches, Medical Staff, and Pro Scouts. For example, you can scout Forwards in Canada for five weeks and receive 10 points to use towards an upgrade.
2. You can trade draft picks to help your position in the draft or trade your picks away to land someone better if this year's class isn't that good.

*Waivers means every team as a chance to sign the player being sent back down to the minors without a 2-way contract. I believe the order of the teams is determined by last year's draft. So if the Islanders picked first in the draft, they would also have first dibs on the player being sent down. If they pass on the player it goes to the next team, and so on and so forth. If the player is not claimed he will be back on your minor league team [farm club]

I hope this helped you out a little bit!

[Vikes1]

Great read Jkra.

I've never drafted in the NHL game. So your advice is helping me as well. Good to hear that the scouting is really meaningful. Vs not being worth the bother. I wasn't sure how valuable the scouting was, so to be honest....I was kinda blowing it off for the most part. Sounds like I need to hit the books on my scouting duties.

Thanks for the info.

[leodido]

Wow awesome post jkra0512, it helped a lot.

I can get going on my be a gm game now

[jkra0512]

Quote: Originally Posted by Vikes1

Great read Jkra. I've never drafted in the NHL game. So your advice is helping me as well. Good to hear that the scouting is really meaningful. Vs not being worth the bother. I wasn't sure how valuable the scouting was, so to be honest....I was kinda blowing it off for the most part. Sounds like I need to hit the books on my scouting duties. Thanks for the info.

Quote: Originally Posted by leodido

Wow awesome post jkra0512, it helped a lot. I can get going on my be a gm game now

I'm glad I could help guys. I know how it feels to be lost in a game. haha

If you have anymore questions let me know!

[nacnud]

Damn epic post, good write-up jkra

[jkra0512]

Thanks buddy! This community has given me so much, it's about damn time I gave back! lol

[leodido]

Where can I find the lines composition of the various NHL teams? I searched on the official site but there's only the overall roster?