NHL 2k vets will find all the game modes they come to expect, play through the standard NHL season, and tournament mode. Also take on some of the classic mini mode and elimination modes. The franchise mode is very deep, where you’ll worry about everything to how well your players get along and the support that your team gets from the hometown fans. The online features are enormous, you could play full tournaments to leagues. The tournaments allow 40 teams, that are able to duke it out online to be crown champions or in hockey terms win the Stanley Cup.

 

Signing a free agent early in the season or negotiating contracts after the season is very enjoyable. The negotiating screen presents you with all the information you would need to figure out what the players want. The players interest in years, salary, you could also see the counter offer. There is nothing like negotiating a contract with a player who has aged and lost a step, but still wants all-star money, only to release him, via the salary cap restrictions, then watching sit the whole season out on the Free agent market cause of his over the top salary

There are also a couple of new things in the game, First are the superstar moves, which are a roster of maneuvers that only top-flight forwards are capable of pulling out, your forward will go into some kind of ridiculous animation before shooting the puck in ridiculous fashion, these moves are remarkable. There are also so many moves that it can be difficult to memorize all the different ones, meaning you might occasionally pull out the wrong moves at the wrong times.

The faceoffs have also been altered, you use the right analog stick to set where you want your stick to be prior to a faceoff, and release it the second the puck is dropped. If you and your opponent end up hitting at the same time, it will result in a tie-up, were a teammate has to skate in and grab the puck.

NHL 2k8 is a great hockey game that is fun for both the die-hard hockey fan and those that just enjoy the thrill of checking and scoring without knowing too much about the sport.