Going from NHL 18 to 21

[KitchenSink]

I finally made the jump up from NHL 18 to 21, and it has been a ROUGH transition in terms of gameplay. I get a much more "arcade" feel to the game, even on Full Sim, and both I and the CPU are scoring 5+ goals a period easily. It also seems like penalties are dialed way up, and it is impossible to dodge the CPU's hits or poke checks.

Does anyone have any advice for a player like me who doesn't upgrade every year and is trying to adjust to a much different-feeling type of game? Or recommendations on how to make NHL 21 feel a little more like 18 initially so I can ease into the upgrade?

Thanks in advance for any advice and Happy Thanksgiving!

[Broncos86]

Interesting. I feel NHL 21 is much better overall in terms of AI. I have a lot more neutral zone action overall and I find myself needing to dump/chase to avoid red line pressure.

What difficulty / sliders do you play on?

[KitchenSink]

Quote: Originally Posted by Broncos86

Interesting. I feel NHL 21 is much better overall in terms of AI. I have a lot more neutral zone action overall and I find myself needing to dump/chase to avoid red line pressure. What difficulty / sliders do you play on?

Sliders are standard, haven't modified any of them. Difficulty is Semi-Pro (not the best player).

[Broncos86]

Getting scored on 5 times a game vs the semi pro AI sounds like you're taking your guys out of position. That level really doesn't do a whole lot, so I'm wondering if you're trying to make the big hit constantly or otherwise pulling guys out of position.

Scoring 5 goals wouldn't be a huge surprise. The semi pro AI allows a lot of shots from the slot and won't contest very much. It's pretty easy to skate into the zone and just set up shop.