NHL 2005, the successor to NHL 2004

NHL 2004

NHL 2004, developed by the EA Black Box studios, is an ice hockey video game. It is the successor to NHL 2003 and is widely considered to be a major turning point in the NHL series. The game adds 3 European Elite Leagues: Germany's Deutsche Eishockey Liga , Sweden's Elitserien , and Finland's...

, is a hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 video game first released on September 14, 2004 in North America and September 24, 2004 in the PAL region.

Improvements/flaws

NHL 2005 features Open Ice Control, which according to EA allows better control, including moving players without the puck and also a complete World Cup

World Cup of Hockey

The World Cup of Hockey is an international ice hockey tournament. Inaugurated in 1996, it is the successor to the previous Canada Cup, which ran from 1976 to 1991...

 mode where each team can be created from scratch. For the first time, the user was allowed to import digitized home arenas for the scratchbuilt teams (the 30 NHL arenas plus Nuremberg Arena

Nuremberg Arena

Nuremberg Arena is an arena in Nuremberg, Germany. Nuremberg Arena opened in 2001 and holds up to 6,500 people.It is used for ice hockey, basketball and concerts.Since 2005, it is also called Arena Nürnberger Versicherung....

, Kölnarena

Kölnarena

Lanxess Arena is an indoor arena, in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The arena opened in 1998 and can accommodate 20,000 people....

, Stockholm Globe Arena

Stockholm Globe Arena

The Ericsson Globe is the national indoor arena of Sweden, located in the Johanneshov district of Stockholm . The Ericsson Globe is currently the largest hemispherical building in the world and took two and a half years to build...

, Helsinki Hartwall Areena

Hartwall Areena

Hartwall Areena is a large multifunctional indoor arena located in Helsinki, Finland...

 and Prague Sazka Arena

Sazka Arena

O2 Arena is a multi-purpose arena, in Prague, Czech Republic.It was built in time for the 2004 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships....

 were available). Additional NHL jerseys and logos were also available including those of the defunct Atlanta Flames

Atlanta Flames

The Atlanta Flames were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA from 1972 to 1980. The team, a member of the National Hockey League , was relocated to Calgary, Alberta, Canada for the start of the 1980–81 NHL season and were re-named the Calgary Flames. The NHL returned to the...

, Winnipeg Jets, Colorado Rockies (NHL)

Colorado Rockies (NHL)

The Colorado Rockies were an American professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League that played in Denver, Colorado, from 1976 to 1982. They were a relocation of the Kansas City Scouts, a 1974 expansion team. The franchise moved to East Rutherford, New Jersey, in 1982 and was...

, Quebec Nordiques

Quebec Nordiques

The Quebec Nordiques were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The Nordiques played in the World Hockey Association and the National Hockey League...

 as well as the old style Los Angeles Kings

Los Angeles Kings

The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...

, Washington Capitals

Washington Capitals

The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Since their founding in 1974, "The Caps" have won one conference championship to reach the 1998 Stanley Cup...

 and Vancouver Canucks

Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...

 uniforms of the 1970s

1970s

File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...

 and the 1980s

1980s

File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...

.

The IIHF license which granted the World Cup mode also allowed EA to use real-life international jerseys for the only time (previously released games used unique jerseys designed by the game's staff which only bore a passing similarity to their real life counterparts, so the jersey shows their flag.) The PC version of the game was stripped down to the bare essentials, including the omitting of the create-a-player feature. These omissions were possibly due to the labour dispute that season, but EA explained that they hadn't perfected the new create-a-player interface, which would have allowed for far greater customizability that what was previously available.

Information

NHL 2005 is also the only EA's NHL PC game that lacks the ability to view league wide statistics when playing in season mode. Vancouver Canucks

Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...

 captain Markus Naslund

Markus Näslund

Sten Markus Näslund is a Swedish ice hockey general manager for Modo Hockey and a retired professional winger. He played in the National Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Vancouver Canucks and New York Rangers, as well as in the Elitserien with Modo Hockey...

 is featured on the cover, except in Finland where Olli Jokinen

Olli Jokinen

Olli Jokinen is a Finnish professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League . He was initially drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 1997, third overall after Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau. He was the captain of the Florida Panthers from 2003...

 is on the cover. NHL 2005 is also the first EA Sports NHL title to be online enabled for the Xbox system.

• Tagline: "Create Open Ice"
• Covers: Markus Naslund
  Markus Näslund
  Sten Markus Näslund is a Swedish ice hockey general manager for Modo Hockey and a retired professional winger. He played in the National Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Vancouver Canucks and New York Rangers, as well as in the Elitserien with Modo Hockey...
  
   (main)
• Olli Jokinen
  Olli Jokinen
  Olli Jokinen is a Finnish professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League . He was initially drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 1997, third overall after Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau. He was the captain of the Florida Panthers from 2003...
  
   (Finland)

Reception

Soundtrack

NHL 2005 Soundtrack
Artist	Song
Ash Ash (band) Ash are an alternative rock band that formed in Downpatrick, Northern Ireland in 1992. The band has sold 8 million albums worldwide.-Band beginning, Trailer and 1977 :...	"Orpheus"
Burning Brides Burning Brides Burning Brides is an American hard rock band. They are partially known for their live performances, such as in 2000 playing selected dates as the opening band for The White Stripes...	"Heart Full of Black"
Dropkick Murphys Dropkick Murphys Dropkick Murphys are an Irish-American punk rock band formed in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1996. The band was initially signed to independent punk record label Hellcat Records, releasing five albums for the label, and making a name for themselves locally through constant playing and yearly St....	"Time To Go"
Faith No More Faith No More Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...	"From out of Nowhere"
Franz Ferdinand Franz Ferdinand (band) Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish post-punk revival band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy , and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single, "Take Me Out", reached #3 in...	"Take Me Out Take Me Out (song) "Take Me Out" is a song by the Scottish band Franz Ferdinand. It was released as the second single from their debut album Franz Ferdinand in the United Kingdom on the 12 January 2004 and in the United State on 9 February, both through Domino Records... "
Hazen Street Hazen Street Hazen Street is a supergroup that formed in early 2004.The band features Freddy Cricien and Hoya of New York hardcore band Madball; Toby Morse of hardcore band H2O; David Kennedy of post-hardcore band Box Car Racer, hardcore punk band Over My Dead Body, and later neo-progressive rock band Angels &...	"Fool the World"
Jersey Jersey (band) Jersey was a Burlington, Ontario ska punk band from 1996 to 2005. In 1997, the band released a demo tape which they sold at local concerts. The band had immediate hype partially due to frontman Taylor's previous band, Grade....	"Saturday Night"
Letter Kills Letter Kills Letter Kills was an alternative rock band from Southern California, formed in August 2002. They were signed to Island Records.The band cites their Christian beliefs as the reason they got together...	"Radio Up"
Lola Ray Lola Ray Lola Ray is an Indie rock band from Brooklyn, New York. It was formed when singer/guitarist John Balicanta re-assembled his high school band from Anaheim, California in order to record a demo for Peter Robinson of RCA Records.-First band:...	"Automatic Girl"
Papa Roach Papa Roach Papa Roach is an American rock band from Vacaville, California. Their first major-label release was the triple-platinum album Infest . The group's success continued with their gold album Lovehatetragedy , their platinum album Getting Away with Murder , The Paramour Sessions , and Metamorphosis...	"Not Listening"
Sugarcult Sugarcult Sugarcult is an American rock band from Santa Barbara, California formed in 1998. The band currently consists of Tim Pagnotta , Airin Older , Marko DeSantis , and Kenny Livingston .-Formation :Tim Pagnotta met ex-drummer Ben Davis during a cigarette break at school...	"Memory"
The F-Ups The F-Ups The F-Ups are an American punk rock band from Rochester, Minnesota-History:The group formed in 1999 while its members were still in high school. Originally the band was named Mr. Completely, and just prior to signing with Capitol Records in 2003 changed the name to "The F-Ups." They came second in...	"Lazy Generation"
The Network The Network The Network is a six-piece New Wave band. They released their debut album Money Money 2020 on Adeline Records on September 30, 2003. A re-release of the album, with two bonus tracks, followed in 2004. The band has not played a live performance since about late 2004 and is believed to have disbanded...	"Roshambo"
The Soundtrack of Our Lives The Soundtrack of Our Lives The Soundtrack of Our Lives, alternatively known as T.S.O.O.L. or Soundtrack, is a Swedish rock band that formed in 1995 after the dissolution of the punk band Union Carbide Productions....	"Karmageddon"