well if your a technical guy when it comes to your gaming.. that wants a super polished, hardly flawed game..NHL09 beats Madden09 in that area..hands down.
It all depends man.. we dont really know what sport you like more and how important a game not having any bugs flaws mean to you. Does a flawed franchise bug you? or a drab feeling NFL game excite you?..i mean i could go on and on and on and at the end of it all..it all depends on your own preference.
Personally..i have Tiger09..awesome game of golf, i have NHL09..to me, the best hockey game ever made and of course i have Madden09..while fun its bug ridden and STILL has no bit of atmosphere and presentation which imho ruin the overall "excitement" of Madden.
So its really hard for us to decide for you..your the only one that can. If our input and thoughts is what your looking for..perhaps you should read thru both the NHL and Madden forums and you make the decision or go to
www.gamerankings.com and have that site give you the deciding factor.