House Rules, Handicaps, & Handcuffs

[divinemind]

What are some things you do to make this game more challenging? In gameplay, trades, drafting, whatever. I only play GM mode on Legacy (no PS4 yet).

Mine:

With lines 3&4, I have to dump & chase. It's too easy to carry the puck in and do whatever I want from there.

Change lines as soon as I can when they turn yellow.


How about yall?


If I'm in playoff position, I have to make moves to ensure I have good depth. Even if I could win with my current lineup, I still try to bolster my team with some rentals as would happen IRL most of the time.

[Toewsface]

In past years (before StanBo traded away half the farm system), I use to have what I called the home-grown rule. Essentially it worked as follows:
1) no trades allowed; 2) can only re-sign player if originally drafted by the franchise; and 3) players must be played in their roster position (e.g. no centers playing left wing).

Existing roster players not drafted by the Hawks (e.g. Sharp, Leddy, etc.) were allowed to stay with the team until they were eligible for free agency (whether UFA or RFA) at which point they would be allowed to walk. Players like Toews and Kane could be re-signed as they were drafted by the franchise. The salary cap would still force me to occasionally lose a skilled player or two even if they were drafted by the franchise (especially in NHL 12 or 13, whichever made every young defenseman want an exorbitant contract). This allowed me to keep a decent core, but to rely on scouting and drafting for replacements. Of course, this could make specific positions very thin when I couldn't draft/develop suitable replacements.


Another thing I've done is limit which games I'm allowed to play. For instance, in one iteration of NHL, I would only play regular season games against franchises who were Norris division rivals with the Blackhawks (i.e. Stars, Wings, Leafs, and Blues; sorry not sorry TB) and sim the remainder (with injuries on). In the playoffs, I would only play home or away games again simming the other games.

[actionhank]

Quote: Originally Posted by Toewsface

In past years (before StanBo traded away half the farm system), I use to have what I called the home-grown rule. Essentially it worked as follows: 1) no trades allowed; 2) can only re-sign player if originally drafted by the franchise; and 3) players must be played in their roster position (e.g. no centers playing left wing). Existing roster players not drafted by the Hawks (e.g. Sharp, Leddy, etc.) were allowed to stay with the team until they were eligible for free agency (whether UFA or RFA) at which point they would be allowed to walk. Players like Toews and Kane could be re-signed as they were drafted by the franchise. The salary cap would still force me to occasionally lose a skilled player or two even if they were drafted by the franchise (especially in NHL 12 or 13, whichever made every young defenseman want an exorbitant contract). This allowed me to keep a decent core, but to rely on scouting and drafting for replacements. Of course, this could make specific positions very thin when I couldn't draft/develop suitable replacements. Another thing I've done is limit which games I'm allowed to play. For instance, in one iteration of NHL, I would only play regular season games against franchises who were Norris division rivals with the Blackhawks (i.e. Stars, Wings, Leafs, and Blues; sorry not sorry TB) and sim the remainder (with injuries on). In the playoffs, I would only play home or away games again simming the other games.

I did something similar with the playoffs. I would only play the home games (to simulate home ice) and then sim the away games. Made it nerve wracking to watch the score pop up.