NHL 16 Center Ice Accuracy - 2nd Update

Every year, we look at the center ices from EA Sports latest version of the NHL series' games. We watch for accuracy and try to help point out areas for improvement. This year will be a bit different, as we have very little to critique compared to previous years. The EA Canada team worked very hard on these ices this year and the results should speak for themselves.

One thing to keep in mind is that EA bases most of their work on the center ice designs from the previous NHL season. This is because they do not have any way of knowing what might changed for the upcoming season. Ices usually do not even go in until after the game is finished. Also keep in mind that anniversary ices are never in EA games. I do not know the exact reason but I would assume that is because it would quickly date the game as the anniversary season for that team would already have concluded. I agree with EA's decision to not include these by the way. Now lets take a look at this year's recreations.

UPDATE: In the latest NHL 16 update, EA Sports has surprised updating some center ices as well as fixing the off pitch goal horns that some fans noted early on after the release. This kind of update is very exciting and extremely rare but the team said they wanted to win fans back and they are continuing to go above and beyond to make NHL 16 as authentic as possible. Well done EA! (updated ices are shown under the comparison images.



Anaheim: Updated with the current red line, this ice is perfect!


Arizona: The red line has been changed to solid but unfortunately EA has legal restrictions on using a gambling brand in an E-rated game, so the arena name this year will be Arizona Arena.  UPDATE: EA managed to make the Arizona Arena text look very similar to the actual wordmark. Nice!


Boston: The solid red line has made a comeback in real life and in the game. Its a great look for such an iconic logo. Update: The TD Garden word mark has been sized down to match the real center ice.



Buffalo: Perhaps pull the word mark away from the circle just a bit and you have a perfect ice. Pull it away even more and it will match the ice for the upcoming NHL season. Update: The arena wordmark has been moved out from the circle.


Calgary: Looks perfect!



Carolina: For years, Canes fans have had to play on a very generic looking ice in a generic rink. Not this year! The first year out of the gate with PNC Arena and EA has nailed the center ice! Next year they just need to add the black boxes just outside the circle and it will again be up-to-date. Update:  The new Hurricanes red line is now included in NHL 16!



Chicago: Also a huge year for the Blackhawks fans who have been upset not to be able to play in United Center. The arena seems to be alternating between too variations of the white boxed red line. EA seems to have come up with their own variation but it looks really good none-the-less.  Update: The red line is now accurate. Very nice job EA!


Colorado: EA fixed the font for the word "CENTER" and now they have a perfect ice! The Avs would have been smart to just stick with the primary logo. This anniversary ice is not a good look in my opinion.


Columbus: The arena text has been fixed and the Nationwide logo has been updated. Perfect!


Dallas: The font for American Airlines Center needs some work but its not terrible by any means. For next year, the red line stars will need to be changed to the shape of Texas. Update: EA has updated the new Texas red line!


Detroit:  Not a bad recreation but it could use a couple tweaks. The arena text needs to be a bit smaller and the font needs some work. The other issue is the logo which needs enlarged. Update: EA fixed the arena wordmark size, fixed the Detroit Red Wings font and enlarged the logo. Also they have their own boxed red line now! Looks great!!


Edmonton: This year, EA fixed the Rexall Place font and we now have a perfect recreation!



Florida: Updated to the solid red line from last year, the only minor flaw is the word mark. The BB&T Center should be darker and have less space between the BB&T letters.Nothing that should spoil the game for any Panthers fan though. For next year the red line will need updated again. Update: The BB&T text has been tightened to match it's real life counterpart and the red line is now very similar to the current one in real life.


Los Angeles: The Kings changed up the logo by added an outline to it so that will need updated for next years game. This year though, they again perfected the ice. Update: The Kings are using the outlined version of their logo this year and now so is EA.


Minnesota: Looks great. A minor tweak to the word mark by using less spacing between letters would be nice but its a great recreation. Update: The arena wordmark now fits tightly around the center circle.


Montreal: With an updated red line and the Centre Bell text fixed, Habs fans will be very pleased with this ice!


Nashville: The Preds keep messing with the spacing of the Bridgestone Arena words but EA picked one and stuck with it and that is the one that will be used this year in real life too.


New Jersey: EA added the Prudential icon to the ice and it looks great!


NY Isles: The Barclays Center ice in NHL 16 will be based on the past two years center ices from Pre-Season games at Barclays Center, and it is a great recreation. Next year the logo and wording and red line will need some work as the team decided to change up the ice for its first official season. Update: The Islanders switched up their Barclays Center ice after the game had already come out, but now the layout has been updated in game too including an updated red line!



NY Rangers: This ice still has the generic boxed red line used on many rinks with similar real life patterns. On some rinks its not as noticeable but this one stands out a bit. EA did fix the 1926 font and the ice really does look very good this year!  Update: The Rangers have a pretty unique version of the boxed red line and now they do in NHL 16 as well!


Ottawa: This year EA added the detailing to the Sens logos in the red line and this ice looks perfect in game!


Philadelphia: This is the only ice this year which seemed to slip between the cracks. The red line was from two years ago and while many Flyers fans still wish the team used the long time triple red line look, it would have been nice to see last years design make the game. For next year the red line will need to be updated to the boxed look which seems like an odd choice for the Flyers given their recent history of ices. On the plus side, EA did update the arena word mark this year. Update: The new Flyers red line has been added to NHL 16!


Pittsburgh: Nothing at all to complain about here!


San Jose: This one just needs a more accurate red line. Otherwise it looks great. Update: The red line has been fixed!


St. Louis: This year EA has fixed the size and colors of the Scottrade Center word mark. Perfect recreation!


Tampa Bay: Amalie Arena debuts in NHL 16 and it looks very nice!


Vancouver: The solid red line is back and the ice looks perfect!


Washington: Hard to complain about this ice but one minor tweak would make this one perfect. the font and spacing of the letters on the Verizon Center word mark could use a little work. Great job though. Updated: The Verizon Center word mark is now tighter and fits around 1/4 of the circle.


Winnipeg Jets: EA nailed this ice last year and no change to it for this year. Looks great!


Overall: Way to go EA. You did an amazing job on the center ices this year. They even worked on improving red lines and other details on AHL and CHL ices this year which is a first! Last year every AHL team but 2 or 3 had the same generic red line. We will take a look at those in the near future! Update: Wow EA, you started out this game with a lot of really great ices, but you have managed to make every center ice in the game quite authentic. Very impressed!

As a bonus, I wanted to include the fact that the boards in Honda Center have been changed to black to match the new boards the Ducks installed for this season!