Maybe you should reassess what "hockey fans" are excited by.
To be fair, I agree, Online league play is something that has turned to crap this generation in all sports games, and it's something I think should be a staple in every sports games. Competition should be the heart of sports games.
But sim gamers kind of ruined that. Only sim gamers would have imagined a world of online league modes filled with CPU teams being run by braindead AI. But for them, sports games has been more about how games look than actual competition.
EA produced one of the worst online league modes I've ever played when they introduced their Connected Franchise mode. You can no longer run a short season with 5 friends each taking other teams. No, you have to play your friends and all the other braindead AI teams.
So gamers looking for actual competition, have flocked to the card mode games because sim gamers ruined online leagues. Some hockey fans actually love the idea of playing with players from different teams and forming combinations of players with different synergies.
HUT and Chel make up most of my gaming time because the franchise mode stuff is really weak. Why does anyone think bargaining agreements are a good source for game features?