This week, EA Sports announced the release of Content Update 2 for NHL 17. This is the first patch for the hockey title since the game’s launch and while the last update fixed major issues, this patch is more of a cosmetic update than anything.
The big addition to NHL 17 inside this update is 11 new goal celebrations. Similar to the FIFA franchise, EA Sports puts a lot of emphasis on the celebrations and NHL 17 is no exception. This title update features celebrations that you would (maybe?) see in normal NHL games you watch on TV, including The Bench Press, what appear to be the old Ray Lewis Dance and I’m pretty sure what looks like The Dougie. I mean who doesn’t want to see John Tavares do The Dougie after scoring a goal for the New York Islanders?
Also included inside Patch 1.04 for NHL 17 is a couple of fixes for Franchise mode. It is said that it’s the little things that sports gaming fans look for and EA Sports had to fix the ability to name captains. One of the major tenets of hockey is deciding who your captains will be and players could not name them until this patch. The patch also fixed the arena capacities issues that were popping up and the overall stability of the mode.
The biggest fix came in regards to goaltender play. I counted 12 different fixes to goaltending that is addressed in this patch and it ranges from getting a goalie unstuck after being hit in the butterfly position to fixing the save logic for wraparounds and near post passes. In NHL 17 or any hockey game for that matter, it is important that the goaltending is reliable within the game. If the goaltending has glitches or weird quirks, it could throw a game off and make the game not playable anymore. EA Sports and its multiple fixes to goaltending may have saved this game from the used game bin at Gamestop.
Below is the full list of fixes for NHL 17. What do you think about the fixes? Let us know in our comment section.
GAMEPLAY
- Added 11 new goal celebrations to the creation zone.
- Fixed an issue where a user goalie would get stuck after getting hit while in butterfly.
- Fixed an issue where after an icing the puck it would sometimes cause human players to sit on the bench for the next play.
- Fixed some issues where a goalie would get stuck in a post lean away from the post.
- Added new post lean saves for more coverage.
- Improved goalie post lean logic so goaltenders to try and make saves that keep them sealed on the post to prevent short side goals.
- Fixed an issue where some signature stances caused the goalie’s glove hand to push back behind their pad when holding the puck idle on their stick.
- Fixed issues with shot animations when in close to the net.
- Updated User goalie save logic to help them move into a save when they are requesting to push/move first.
- Added functionality to allow goalies to rotate more when coming off the post from VH to butterfly to make them more square to the puck.
- Updates to User goalie save logic on wraparounds based on requested motion.
- Updates to User goalie save delay when in good position to make a blocking save.
- Fixed an issue where a goalie would sometimes drop to butterfly when in possession of the puck on a User requested pass attempt.
- Improved the reliability of one timers by adding quicker snapshots for situations where there isn't enough time to take a full slapshot.
- Fixed an issue where precision skating would sometimes conflict with a loose puck deke attempt at a slow speed. Now if you have your stick out a deking position it prioritizes the deke request.
- Updated goalie logic so that goalies will hold their near post on pass attempts near the net to prevent easy short side goals.
- Updated goalie logic for softer shots on net so that they look to pick it up rather than make a save.
- Various crash fixes.
- General stability updates across all modes.
PRESENTATION
The following uniforms have been added:
NHL
- Los Angeles Kings Alternate Uniform
- Philadelphia Flyers Alternate Uniform
- Winnipeg Jets Heritage Classic Uniform
AHL
- Springfield Thunderbirds Home and Away Uniforms
- Tucson Roadrunners Home and Away Uniforms
CHL
- Calgary Hitmen Home and Away Uniforms
- Charlottetown Islanders Home and Away Uniforms
- Cape Breton Screaming Eagles Alternate Uniform
- Drummondville Voltigeurs Home and Away Uniforms
- Everett Silvertips Home and Away Uniforms
- Kingston Frontenacs Alternate Uniform
- Lethbridge Hurricanes Home and Away Uniforms
- Swift Current Broncos Alternate Uniform
Liiga
- Oulun Kärpät Home and Away Uniforms
- Rauman Lukko Home and Away Uniforms
- Tampereen Tappara Home and Away Uniforms
- Tampereen Ilves Home and Away Uniforms
SHL
- Malmo Redhawks Alternate Uniform
- HV71 Home and Away Uniforms
- Farjestad BK Home and Away Uniforms
- Djurgården IF Home and Away Uniforms
- Karlskrona HK Home and Away Uniforms
ECHL
- South Carolina Stingrays Alternate Uniform
The following equipment has been added:
- Bauer Vapor 1X OD1N
- Vaughn V7 XF Pro Carbon
- Brian’s G-NETIK III
EASHL
- Added new jersey logos to customize for your club.
- Added 11 new goal celebrations for your Pro.
- Added a new Drop-in Feature where a group of users can play a private unranked game through the Drop-in Dressing Room lobby:
- Dressing Room Leaders can enter a 4-6 digit private matchmaking ID to matchup privately against another group using the same ID
- Both groups must be matchmaking at the same time with the exact same ID, which means this is meant for larger coordinated games or practice sessions.
- Added the ability to select and view the Player Summary screen from the disconnect and end of game pause menus.
- Fixed issues where Banners, Entry Props, and Flags were clipping through certain cameras in EASHL stadiums.
- Fixed an issue where after icing the puck while on a 4on4 as their penalty is expiring, users would have their players on the bench on the next play.
- Added a new PS4 Feature called Play Together which is used to quickly get a group of friends playing in a Drop-In Group Matchmaking session:
- Allows the host players to invite up to 6 players directly from the Party screen to a new game session
- Go to [Party] > [Play Together] > [Start Game] to create a new session
- The host will be brought to a Drop-In dressing room and the game will automatically send invites to all players the host selected,
- Allows players to join a new game session through invitation or directly from the Party screen:
- Open the invitation sent from the host and select [Join]
- Or go to [Party] > [Play Together] and select one of the Current Game Sessions to join
HUT:
- Improved the Quick Swap functionality in the Edit Lineup screen for quicker line management and updated animations. Quick Swaps can now be performed without transitioning to a separate screen.
- The Synergy Details screen is now visible in the Collection search results when performing player substitutions to further enhance the team building mechanic.
- The highlight animation has been updated in all HUT screens to improve visibility.
- Added new Jersey items to some of the team collections.
FRANCHISE
- Fixed an issue where players who have a playable injury and are scratched lose morale.
- Note: if a player is fully healed and is scratched they will lose morale.
- Fixed issue where no captains were being assigned in Franchise Mode.
- Fixed multiple arena capacities.
- Fixed multiple teams merchandise images in the set prices screen.
- Improved overall stability within the mode.
BE A PRO
- Fixed issue where a User would keep getting the doctor's approval to play popup each time they returned to the bench.
- Fixed issue where no captains were being assigned in Be a Pro.
- Improved overall stability within the mode.
