The GM Mode Prospect Thread

[Tak7]

I tried going with the high shot theory, and had Spencer Watson come out of nowhere and score 70 goals (yes, 70) in the AHL, followed by a 35 goal season in the NHL. The kicker, he's a 74 overall at 27, and resigned for under a million per. Even if your player isn't that good, keep guys with good shots, because they can turn into good players if you leave em in the minors long enough

Yeah, really good point.

It really forces you to learn about the players in your team - overall doesn't tell the whole story.

I remember in NHL 13, Viktar Rask used to be that sort of prospect for me - would never get above an 81 or 82 overall, so would always have him on my third or fourth line paying him peanuts. But he had 95+ on all his offensive and shot categories (I think his low OA was because his physical category was very low).

He always put up between 30-45 goals each year, playing on the first PP unit. He was quite literally a PP specialist.

I like those sorts of players - really rewards you if you pay attention to what a player does well vs not so well, rather than just focusing on a player's overall in order to judge him.

 

[Pirate King Luffy]

I use to do the same as you guys and wait to sign the players...but I decided to try something else. I noticed the players develop better if you sign them early on. Before some players I signed struggled to get better. I have played a lot of GM mode and drafted some players again and instead signed them early and that is when I noticed he developed much better than being unsigned. That is what I found.

 

[The Nuge]

Bart up to 89 overall
klimchuk an 88 overall
d poulliot an 89 overall
monahan an 85 overall
this is in the year 2020

Wow! I'm yet to have Pouliot get over 80, let alone up to an 89

 

[Tak7]

If you sign an 18 year old to an entry level deal, and he spends 2 years in junior, do those 2 years get burned from his contract?

 

[LoganLeafs19]

If you sign an 18 year old to an entry level deal, and he spends 2 years in junior, do those 2 years get burned from his contract?

As far as I can tell those two years don't get burned off. I signed Sam Bennett (71OVR, 4.5 Yellow, 18) to an ELC after drafting him this off-season and sent him back to Kingston after the pre-season. After I finish simulating year 2 I'll confirm the years getting burned off or not.

 

[Constable]

In the 2016 offseason I was looking to find a good up and coming dman when I stumbled across Colorado and noticed that Stefan Elliot was a 95 ovr with 99 speed 99 def and off awareness and passing. This was on July 1, so I gave up a good chunk of my prospect pool and a star player to get him. I then simulated to pre-season and was setting up my lineup just to notice that he was now an 87 ovr and all his crazy stats were now down to high 80s. Did anyone else notice this or encounter this problem? He still has full trade value just not as good stat wise

Problem occurs alot, need the patch.

Boom: S.Pierog: 3 1/2 gold stars, yet works so well on my top line of mackinnon and huberdeau.

Bust: Kyle Okposo: Thought he would be the same as pier, but,alas, was a bust.

 

[Pirate King Luffy]

They don't burn off the years for as long as they are in the CHL.

 

[Yokai]

If NHL14 is anything like NHL13 in terms of how prospects develop then it is completely random and has nothing to do with where the players play. In NHL12 when players gained experience and you could focus their training then having them produce in the AHL mattered. Now the prospect system seems to be based on: A) Randomly determined path and B) NHL offensive output.

I'm not sure if Kellogs was talking about myself or another poster, but in NHL13 you could tell which prospects would develop into actual NHL players based on their shooting stats, offense awareness, defensive awareness, body checking, passing, and puck control. All of those stats tend to sky rocket for prospect that develop quickly while the rest more or less stay where they were from draft day forward. Personally I find it kind of annoying that most of the prospects never improve their speed, strength, or faceoffs.

The easiest way to test if playing a prospect at different levels makes a difference is to grab someone in year one that you know has a big jump. Normally there are guys that go from mid-seventies to low to mid eighties in a single year and generally from what I've seen they'll do that if they play in the NHL, AHL, CHL, or sit on the bench the whole season.

NHL 13 Development System:

Player type 1: Jumps from 70's to 80's within one to two years.
Player type 2: Jumps from low 70's to high 70's to 80's.
Player type 3: Goes up by roughly two to three overall per season.
Player type 4: Sits at whatever overall until 25 and then jumps up to whatever potential their star rating corresponds with.

In terms of jumps due to production:

80+ points = 1st/2nd Line FWD
60-70 points = 2nd Line FWD
40-50 Points = 3rd Line SCR
20-30 Points = 3rd LINE Chk

50+ points = Top 2 D
30-40 points = Top 4 D
20ish points = Top 6 D

30-40 Wins + 1.00-1.99 GAA and .940 SV% = Elite Goaltender (For certain players)
30ish Wins + 2.00ish GAA and .930 SV% = Starting goaltender

Players of any time type of star can hit new roles based on their production. As soon as those numbers drop in any following season the player will normally revert to their old ranking or will drop to meet the new role based on their production. This is why you see a lot of defensemen with 4 white stars fluctuate from year to year between top 2 to top 6. Poor performance can also hurt players/drop their overall, so it could be argued that keeping them out of the NHL if they aren't going to do well and don't auto skyrocket is a safe bet.

Since NHL12 saving right before the NHL salary cap numbers come up on the day that the Stanley Cup/Calder Cup winners are announced will allow you to continually reset and get different results for stat/dimension increases. Just make sure you save BEFORE you sim to the day where the new cap numbers come up. With enough patience you can make players jump up in the areas that you want them to and force them to grow/gain weight, but it is very tedious.

This isn't an exact science but it is basically how things worked and most likely this year's system is similar with the random in-season jumps thrown in. Due to my annoyance with finally finding a file where people developed like I wanted them to I haven't bothered to spend much time on NHL14.

 

[Flashman33]

Boom: Julius honka ofd 85ovr 4.5 red 2014 65th
Boom: Dylan Olsen dfd 85ovr 3.5 yellow 2009 28th
Boom: Daniel sprong snp 84ovr 4.5 red 2015 38th
Bust: spencer Watson snp 74ovr 3.5 yellow 2014 37th
Surprise: Troy trombley hyb 75ovr 3 red 2014 187th
End of 2020-21 season.
Drafts really get weak after 2016, especially for goalies, only 2 after 2016 with more than 4 red potential

 

[Tak7]

They don't burn off the years for as long as they are in the CHL.

Thanks man. Appreciate it.

And good write up Egg

 

[Cyborg Yzerberg]

they really need to do a better job with prospects in this game, I usually edit their overalls from the get go so that when they're drafted, they can contribute to the nhl immediately.(Because Reinhart, McDavid, etc. will prolly be in the NHL right away)

 

[The Nuge]

Boom: Julius honka ofd 85ovr 4.5 red 2014 65th
Boom: Dylan Olsen dfd 85ovr 3.5 yellow 2009 28th
Boom: Daniel sprong snp 84ovr 4.5 red 2015 38th
Bust: spencer Watson snp 74ovr 3.5 yellow 2014 37th
Surprise: Troy trombley hyb 75ovr 3 red 2014 187th
End of 2020-21 season.
Drafts really get weak after 2016, especially for goalies, only 2 after 2016 with more than 4 red potential

Use him anyways. He scores goals like crazy for me

 

[Yokai]

Thanks man. Appreciate it.

And good write up Egg

Thanks.

Wish I could shed some more light on NHL14 specifically. I just spent so much time learning the ins and outs of NHL12/13's contract/growth systems that I was kind of burnt out for this year's game and nothing about it wow'd me enough to jump into it so far. Hopefully the entire system is overhauled for the next gen NHL games because GM Mode would be a lot more fun with a decent prospect development system.

 

[ICanMotteBelieveIt]

Has everyone else noticied that Sean Monahan refuses to progress? I even gave him 4.5 green stars in potential and still no development.


I'm currently using the latest roster update, he still won't go up in overall.


P.s mI simulate my careers, everyone else progresses good.




Players who cost all but nothing but become great scorers and/or 2-way players.

Erne - Tampa
Rychel - CBJ
Hanowski - Cal


^ i always get Rychel and Erne, they become studs and are dirt cheap to obtain.

 

[ICanMotteBelieveIt]

UFA Mikael Wikstrand (swedish D) is money as well. He's a 54-58 overall, I put him in manually on my ahl team and after 3 seasons he's a 79 overall with 90+ offensive and defensive awareness, he's young as well.


I highly recommend that u sign young promising UFA's, do the best lines on your ahl team, then replace the bottom players on FWD/D and put in your prospects there, put them on the 2nd PP unit and turn injuries OFF, simulate 1-3 seasons.


Then you can either play with a young, great team who is cheap. Or you can continue to simulate.




Chris Summers - Phoenix is a must have! 75 overall, becomes 82 overall after 1 season. I always sign him to a 8 year ~1 million per year contract.


He's a defensive D, 87-88 speed,high defensive attributes and is a great hitter.


Gryba - ottawa

Big, physical D,only 80 speed. But a great bruiser who becomes a 83 overall in the 2nd year.

 

[melnyk budget*]

How do i develop twf/grn? Do i keep them on bottom 2 lines and pk minutes in ahl/nhl? Ive been doing what i do for other forwards but it doesnt work with these types

 

[Kellogs]

If NHL14 is anything like NHL13 in terms of how prospects develop then it is completely random and has nothing to do with where the players play. In NHL12 when players gained experience and you could focus their training then having them produce in the AHL mattered. Now the prospect system seems to be based on: A) Randomly determined path and B) NHL offensive output.

I'm not sure if Kellogs was talking about myself or another poster, but in NHL13 you could tell which prospects would develop into actual NHL players based on their shooting stats, offense awareness, defensive awareness, body checking, passing, and puck control. All of those stats tend to sky rocket for prospect that develop quickly while the rest more or less stay where they were from draft day forward. Personally I find it kind of annoying that most of the prospects never improve their speed, strength, or faceoffs.

The easiest way to test if playing a prospect at different levels makes a difference is to grab someone in year one that you know has a big jump. Normally there are guys that go from mid-seventies to low to mid eighties in a single year and generally from what I've seen they'll do that if they play in the NHL, AHL, CHL, or sit on the bench the whole season.

NHL 13 Development System:

Player type 1: Jumps from 70's to 80's within one to two years.
Player type 2: Jumps from low 70's to high 70's to 80's.
Player type 3: Goes up by roughly two to three overall per season.
Player type 4: Sits at whatever overall until 25 and then jumps up to whatever potential their star rating corresponds with.

In terms of jumps due to production:

80+ points = 1st/2nd Line FWD
60-70 points = 2nd Line FWD
40-50 Points = 3rd Line SCR
20-30 Points = 3rd LINE Chk

50+ points = Top 2 D
30-40 points = Top 4 D
20ish points = Top 6 D

30-40 Wins + 1.00-1.99 GAA and .940 SV% = Elite Goaltender (For certain players)
30ish Wins + 2.00ish GAA and .930 SV% = Starting goaltender

Players of any time type of star can hit new roles based on their production. As soon as those numbers drop in any following season the player will normally revert to their old ranking or will drop to meet the new role based on their production. This is why you see a lot of defensemen with 4 white stars fluctuate from year to year between top 2 to top 6. Poor performance can also hurt players/drop their overall, so it could be argued that keeping them out of the NHL if they aren't going to do well and don't auto skyrocket is a safe bet.

Since NHL12 saving right before the NHL salary cap numbers come up on the day that the Stanley Cup/Calder Cup winners are announced will allow you to continually reset and get different results for stat/dimension increases. Just make sure you save BEFORE you sim to the day where the new cap numbers come up. With enough patience you can make players jump up in the areas that you want them to and force them to grow/gain weight, but it is very tedious.

This isn't an exact science but it is basically how things worked and most likely this year's system is similar with the random in-season jumps thrown in. Due to my annoyance with finally finding a file where people developed like I wanted them to I haven't bothered to spend much time on NHL14.

Yup, I believe I was referencing one of your posts concerning looking at prospects' shooting accuracies to determine whether they will grow rapidly or not. Interestingly enough, you are correct about progression being dependent on different pre-determined development paths. I'm not sure if you follow what's going on at OperationSports, but with db editors, people have been able to uncover all sorts of hidden goodies in the game. One of which is that on top of having potential, players are also assigned a separate value which essentially equates to development speed.

Which is why I preferred NHL 12 in that aspect, you didn't have some hidden variable that no one knew about that could make or break the development of your prospects. Also, concerning the saving and reloading the game to change the attributes of players in the off-season, with NHL 12 I found the effect of that to be minimal. From my experience, players typically progress a certain attribute by X amount during the off-season based on their potential rating, and that value is essentially constant (perhaps there's a +/- 1 variation, but nothing substantial like in 13/14). The biggest impact however would be on the poise rating which seemingly went up by a random amount, and given how much of an effect poise had on the overall of players, it's easy to see why saving/reloading a file might give the appearance that you have variability in player ratings.

 

[Yokai]

Yup, I believe I was referencing one of your posts concerning looking at prospects' shooting accuracies to determine whether they will grow rapidly or not. Interestingly enough, you are correct about progression being dependent on different pre-determined development paths. I'm not sure if you follow what's going on at OperationSports, but with db editors, people have been able to uncover all sorts of hidden goodies in the game. One of which is that on top of having potential, players are also assigned a separate value which essentially equates to development speed.

Which is why I preferred NHL 12 in that aspect, you didn't have some hidden variable that no one knew about that could make or break the development of your prospects. Also, concerning the saving and reloading the game to change the attributes of players in the off-season, with NHL 12 I found the effect of that to be minimal. From my experience, players typically progress a certain attribute by X amount during the off-season based on their potential rating, and that value is essentially constant (perhaps there's a +/- 1 variation, but nothing substantial like in 13/14). The biggest impact however would be on the poise rating which seemingly went up by a random amount, and given how much of an effect poise had on the overall of players, it's easy to see why saving/reloading a file might give the appearance that you have variability in player ratings.

With NHL12 they made the process extremely tedious in the sense that you had to fully back out to the dashboard then reload the game to get different increases to the letter rated potentials. Yeah the actual stats didn't change much, but if you could keep a guy all B's or increase his potential to A-'s, then next year the player could get significantly better. Using that method you could also stop older players from degrading as fast and slightly prolong their careers. Hands down NHL12 was my favourite in terms of prospects/contracts so far.

In NHL13 (and 14 I'd assume) the rerolling can be done just by reloading on the day before the new salary numbers pop up. Mostly the only stats you'll really be able change will be the ones I talked about sky rocketing earlier. For example I could take Jamie Benn and at the end of an 80 point season I can reset to either get shooting stats all in the high eighties or all in the low nineties. The difference in Benn's overall can be varied from 88ish to 90ish depending on what his shooting stats wind up as. I always used the rerolling to control contracts because players are more likely to sign lower deals when defined as for example a 3rd line CHKer as opposed to a 2nd Line player even if they have similar stats.

I've seen a bit of the work on OS and it seems if you have some coding know how then you can do some pretty crazy things with the game. IIRC people found a way to go in and actually edit every thing about a player from their face, contract, height, weight, and whatever else. Pretty sure you could rename arenas and the like as well. Sad that people actually have to go through and overhaul something we paid 60$ for just because EA can't do their job right.

 

[shenke31]

Might be a no brainer here folks but Johnny huberdeau is an absolute stud. Traded Cody hodgson 83 for huberdeau 83 and two seasons later 90 overall and put up 94 points. He's gonna be a rock star for years to come. As for Florida and hodgson, 86 tops, not worth it to have him at all

 

[dyzfunctioned]

Might be a no brainer here folks but Johnny huberdeau is an absolute stud. Traded Cody hodgson 83 for huberdeau 83 and two seasons later 90 overall and put up 94 points. He's gonna be a rock star for years to come. As for Florida and hodgson, 86 tops, not worth it to have him at all

The thing I hate about Huberdeau and other star C's in NHL 14 is that they're just god awful on the dot.

 

[ICanMotteBelieveIt]

The thing I hate about Huberdeau and other star C's in NHL 14 is that they're just god awful on the dot.

Yeah, this. Use them as wingers?

 

[Pirate King Luffy]

The thing I hate about Huberdeau and other star C's in NHL 14 is that they're just god awful on the dot.

You could edit Huberdeau and make him a left winger/right winger. That is what he plays in the NHL anyways. He was a center when he was drafted.

Florida has good center depth anyways so it makes sense to move him to the wing.

 

[dyzfunctioned]

Yeah, this. Use them as wingers?

Yea, usually do. Problem is, then I sim a few games, someone gets injured and Assistant Coach throws my whole lineup off

Oh well.

 

[Hokie200proof]

Boom - Adam Erne and Valentine Zykov, both are pretty cheap (and stay cheap somehow?). I want to say Erne is a 4.5 and Zykov is a 4.5 yellow (the yellow font is impossible to see).

Bust(ish) - Aleksander Barkov (4.5 yellow) and Kyle Okposo (4 yellow)


A little background for this assessment - I'm in my third season as BAGM with the Caps and I started atthe 2013 draft. My current roster, other than a couple of names you might guess, is wholesale different from the one on the ice right now. I didn't make any moves pre-draft, but Aleksander Barkov always falls to the 15th spot (simulated three times, he's always there) or wherever the Caps draft. I felt pretty lucky when he did, but more on that later.

I immediately went to get Adam Erne from Montreal (was trying to get as many USA juniors as I could) for a couple of picks. Midway through my first season I traded Laich and Green for Okposo and Stepan (who had somehow made his way to the Islanders). Okposo was an 83 ovr and 4 yellow (I think).

So, where are they now?

Okposo - in the 2015-16 season he's now 84 ovr and his potential turned white (meaning his growth or ceiling is fixed?) in the first off-season. Hardly any growth, but I like playing with him on my second line. I had hoped he's be a nice fit on the top line with Ovechkin and Backstrom, but I find he's better playing with Stepan on the 2nd line. Is "role" is also "2nd", so he's in the right spot.

Barkov - traded at the start of the 2015-16 season for Zykov. Barkov was a 71 ovr but was not really showing me much. He spent his first season in the CHL and didn't improve at all, so far as I could tell. The next year he was in Hershey and a perpetual pain in my arse as I always had to put him back into the lineup (tried to play his with 77+ ovr scoring wingers). He jumped up a bit, but still wasn't a default starter on the Hershey Bears. I decided to move on. I wanted a young, top-line RWer and I was shocked to see that Barkov's trade value remained pretty high. High enough to get to Zykov straight up, who was coming into the season rated 81 ovr. Couldn't be happier with this move...

Zykov - no idea where his rating started, but I got him in the off-season at an 81 ovr and he jumped to 84 by the end of training camp. He's playing RW with Ovie and Backstrom and he is a pure sniper. Slower than I'd like, but all of his shooting stats are close to 99... and it shows. He's Behind Dourin in the rookie scoring race with 37 grapes with 22 games to play. Awesome player and his trade value is somehow very low (and hasn't changed even with his jumped up ratings?).

Erne - Also a coup, got him for a song and he's has progressed a lot like Zykov. He was in the CHL for two season and came out as an 81 ovr. By season start he was 84 ovr and he's got a killer shot as well. Bigger body than Kykov (who is big himself) and can really hold the puck in tight spots.

 

[melnyk budget*]

weird, right now i have okposo at 89ov 29years old. put him with tavares who is 92ov 26 years old.

when i did florida be a gm, i put barkov and huberdeau together and got barkov at 91 and hubs at 88 or 89 after a couple seasons.

zykov is sick. hes always leading the league in goals and top5 for points every season.