EHM 07 - Part 11: "Wants a new challenge"

[Smirnov2Chistov]

I am also still playing 2007! I have a save file I started in December 2011... I am in the year 2104... which is the farthest I've EVER gone in a file. I've won over 50 Cups with Canadiens but I'll occasionally leave for another team, build them up, make them a mini dynasty, then move on. Just finished a second stint at the Habs and have now been with the Blackhawks for about 10 years. I have an aging 37 year old Mats Sundin regen as my team's MVP (originally drafted him on the Habs) and now I believe I drafted the Forsberg regen to succeed him.

I still love this game. I've tried to get myself to switch over to EHM1 but I miss the sidebar too much. I find it makes much more sense from a UI perspective. One of the greatest games ever made.

Some fun stats: I've saved 4044 times and I have 306d8h41m33s of time spent in this file as per my latest save.

I often will make other saves to test out DB changes and stuff (I use a modified unfaked DB with custom players added as I believe support for 2007's DB stopped around 2015?ish so I've added a lot of players that have been drafted since, mostly just the top star players but still).

Been a while @irunthepeg ! Nice to see you visiting here..

My save with the draft pick picture has been going on since 2011. I don’t really play it too much because I have WAY too many prospects and star players all on one roster. Hard to juggle around that much star power and incoming talent all in one team.

My current play through right now is with KoMu HT of the Finnish Third Division. It was technically the smallest playable team with the smallest budget and no staff. I am in my fourth season and just achieved promotion to Metsis (Second Division). I have a full DB with all leagues selected just in case I wanted to experience every league.

I wanted to originally do a journeyman save, and might end up following through with that. Did you notice anything different has you headed into the far future? 2104.. that’s unbelievable lol.

 

[irunthepeg]

Been a while @irunthepeg ! Nice to see you visiting here..

My save with the draft pick picture has been going on since 2011. I don’t really play it too much because I have WAY too many prospects and star players all on one roster. Hard to juggle around that much star power and incoming talent all in one team.

My current play through right now is with KoMu HT of the Finnish Third Division. It was technically the smallest playable team with the smallest budget and no staff. I am in my fourth season and just achieved promotion to Metsis (Second Division). I have a full DB with all leagues selected just in case I wanted to experience every league.

I wanted to originally do a journeyman save, and might end up following through with that. Did you notice anything different has you headed into the far future? 2104.. that’s unbelievable lol.

Haha thank you, yeah HF and hockey have become a bit of a second thought to me these days but I still love this game through and through.

It is tough. I always want to reset and start over and tweak things in my DB and change but I always come back to this file as I've made it my "main file" so until something fully crashes out and dies I will keep playing it.

Um, nothing too strange. I find it harder to find good scouts and staff these days but that's about it. The craziest thing is how many teams have won at least a Cup. I think only five teams in the game still haven't won. Preds, Sharks, Blue Jackets, Blues and Panthers. Hell even the Leafs finally won, in 2099 so it took them over 100 years.

 

[irunthepeg]

Interesting regen in my file I just noticed:

Somebody regened from likely another nationality to Dutch. Very cool because he's very likely to succeed as a player in the game being 6'4 229lbs. I might make a new file just to see who this likely is/was.

I've started to challenge myself to not just grab the biggest players because height/weight is way overvalued in the game engine here. I found this TBL thread A Simple Tactic - EHM The Blue Line and started to use it because I find it's way more challenging to run a low GAA and succeed.

 

[irunthepeg]

Ahh I think it's a Dainus Zubrus regen? He's Lithuanian/Russian and maybe the Lithuanian has a weird ability to regen. Same flair in the base file. Only oddity is this one is way more aggressive than Zubrus, although I may have edited that in the DB since I started this file. Also his consistency is doubled in the current file, which again I may have edited at one point, or there may be some oddity as the game gets farther.

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

It is tough. I always want to reset and start over and tweak things in my DB and change but I always come back to this file as I've made it my "main file" so until something fully crashes out and dies I will keep playing it.

How hard is it to create a DB?

The only tinkering I've done is through the EHM Assistant on EHM 1. I was able to get Portugal to be 'pooled' into the World Championships and Olympics, but for some reason they are never invited to the Euro Ice Hockey Challenge. The team that I replaced them with, Serbia, is invited. Small quirk, but not game breaking.

I've started to challenge myself to not just grab the biggest players because height/weight is way overvalued in the game engine here. I found this TBL thread A Simple Tactic - EHM The Blue Line and started to use it because I find it's way more challenging to run a low GAA and succeed.

Maybe it's because I've never actually coached the game, but maybe I should start looking into this more. Is there a clear advantage in getting players over (let's say) - 6 foot +?

 

[irunthepeg]

How hard is it to create a DB?

The only tinkering I've done is through the EHM Assistant on EHM 1. I was able to get Portugal to be 'pooled' into the World Championships and Olympics, but for some reason they are never invited to the Euro Ice Hockey Challenge. The team that I replaced them with, Serbia, is invited. Small quirk, but not game breaking.





Maybe it's because I've never actually coached the game, but maybe I should start looking into this more. Is there a clear advantage in getting players over (let's say) - 6 foot +?

I just took an Unfaked database (I think that was the name UUDB or something) and just added in my own players and tweaked certain players I liked haha.

I've never coached or played competitively at any level. In EHM 2007 specifically, height and weight have a HUGE advantage. Notice the 6'2+ 220+ guys and look at their average ratings. A lot of them will have a lot more 7-8 overall ratings for a season than a guy who's like 5'10 180. Notice even a Patrick Kane type of player will put up 8s in his best seasons but mostly 7s.

 

[irunthepeg]

Here's some fun screenshots:

Note that insanely dominant run Canada had at the WJC at the beginning then contrast the present... they have not won since 2080... INSANE. Slovakian dominance at the tourney recently. I may have to apply for the job and bring some glory back to Canada.

 

[irunthepeg]

One of my most impressive streaks ever

 

[irunthepeg]

Here's one I've NEVER seen before:

My star Canadian goaltender is HOMESICK... never seen that before at any level or on any file.

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

Here's one I've NEVER seen before:

View attachment 1051126My star Canadian goaltender is HOMESICK... never seen that before at any level or on any file.

That's interesting!

You know what makes it funnier? This kind of thing happens frequently in Football Manager. I had a French midfielder who was also homesick. I transferred him to another Italian team in the same league and he was not homesick anymore.

Players will do anything to leave lol

 

[alko]

Here's some fun screenshots:

View attachment 1049823
View attachment 1049824
Note that insanely dominant run Canada had at the WJC at the beginning then contrast the present... they have not won since 2080... INSANE. Slovakian dominance at the tourney recently. I may have to apply for the job and bring some glory back to Canada.

Very nice. Who are the Slovakian NHL stars?

 

[irunthepeg]

That's interesting!

You know what makes it funnier? This kind of thing happens frequently in Football Manager. I had a French midfielder who was also homesick. I transferred him to another Italian team in the same league and he was not homesick anymore.

Players will do anything to leave lol

Right? Yeah so that's the Martin Brodeur regen, who for some reason has never been more than a .909 with my team for some reason except when he came in as a ROOKIE in the playoffs and put up a .944 in 20 games (15 wins ). I have always struggled in this game to get goalies to have above a .900 save % which speaks to the game's weight into offense. Ended up trading him because he came back and suddenly hated ME of all people even though I gave him quite a few leaves.

Very nice. Who are the Slovakian NHL stars?

One is Marian Hossa (regen obviously), and then Chara but honestly besides that I don't really know. I guess the team was just very well balanced in the WJC haha.

 

[Tim Calhoun]

I am also still playing 2007! I have a save file I started in December 2011... I am in the year 2104... which is the farthest I've EVER gone in a file. I've won over 50 Cups with Canadiens but I'll occasionally leave for another team, build them up, make them a mini dynasty, then move on. Just finished a second stint at the Habs and have now been with the Blackhawks for about 10 years. I have an aging 37 year old Mats Sundin regen as my team's MVP (originally drafted him on the Habs) and now I believe I drafted the Forsberg regen to succeed him.

I still love this game. I've tried to get myself to switch over to EHM1 but I miss the sidebar too much. I find it makes much more sense from a UI perspective. One of the greatest games ever made.

Some fun stats: I've saved 4044 times and I have 306d8h41m33s of time spent in this file as per my latest save.

I often will make other saves to test out DB changes and stuff (I use a modified unfaked DB with custom players added as I believe support for 2007's DB stopped around 2015?ish so I've added a lot of players that have been drafted since, mostly just the top star players but still).

This sounds exactly like me. I’m in year 2130 or so. I only play a few days per year nowadays but from around 2007-2020 I played religiously that I learned every trick in the book.

It’s a very easy game to dominate, especially via building a team through the draft (Euros are very under appreciated by the computer and you routinely draft superstars in the late 1st and 2nd).

Try self-imposing some constraints to make the game harder and more fun. I don’t make any trades or sign free agents, and I routinely give away my first round pick away for free to random teams.