NHL (video game series)

NHL (colloquially referred to as Chel) is a series of professional ice hockey simulation video games developed by EA Vancouver and published yearly by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports brand. The game is developed under license from the National Hockey League (NHL), which enables the use of the league's team names, arenas and colors in the game, and the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA), which enables the use of the league's player names and likenesses.

Installments

In NHL Hockey from 1991, the game modes were season and playoff, and due to the license, the game was called EA Hockey in Europe and featured 22 national teams instead. NHLPA Hockey '93 was without the NHL license, so instead of NHL team names and logos, there were only cities. Game modes added in NHL 95 were exhibition, training, shootout and the possibility to edit and trade individual players in teams. On PC, NHL 96 was in 3D with 2D player textures, fights are back (most recently in the first two games). NHL 97 was the first full 3D installment, the national teams of Canada, USA and Russia have been added, the other two teams contain a compilation of the best European players. In NHL 98, 18 national teams were already included. In NHL 99, the career mode was added and in NHL 2000, the tournament mode.

{| class="wikitable"

! Title

! Year

! Platforms

! Standard edition cover athletes, worldwide

! Cover athletes, specific regions and editions

| NHL Hockey || 1991 || GEN

| || –

| NHLPA Hockey '93 || 1992 || GEN, SNES

| || –

| NHL '94 || 1993 || DOS, SCD, GEN, SNES

| || –

| NHL 95 || 1994 || DOS, GB, GG, GEN, SNES

| || –

| NHL 96 || 1995 || DOS, GB, GEN, SNES

| || –

| NHL 97 || 1996 || DOS, PS1, SAT, GEN, SNES, WIN

| John Vanbiesbrouck (Florida) || –

| NHL 98 || 1997 || PS1, SAT, GEN, SNES, WIN

| Peter Forsberg (Colorado)| Richard Smehlik (Buffalo)

| NHL 2001 || 2000 || PS1, PS2, WIN

| Owen Nolan (San Jose)