For sure. I think the fact that NHL has expansion is certainly gives it a step up from MLB/Madden (though overall, both of those games have better franchise modes), but you're right about us essentially screaming at a wall about all of the little things that we, as a community, want.
I'm pretty happy with the overall game play this year, and hope they continue to trend in the right direction, but I remember hearing about one of the devs (can't remember who), laughing at the idea of roster sharing. That's a shame and seems like it should be commonplace nowadays among sports games.