NHL 22 also introduces the new expansion team Seattle Kraken, as they join the National Hockey League in the 2021–22 NHL season. NHL 22 also introduces new gameplay animations, with new reverse hitting, new pass and shot blocks, new pickups, revamped puck protection, additional goalie saves/pokes, and more.

In moving to the Frostbite Engine, the NHL team is rebuilding all the arenas around the new lighting engine, allowing for enhanced particle and visual effects on the ice and elsewhere, as well as the character models are also being redone.

According to NHL producer Clement Kwong, the NHL team's priority this year was making sure everything will be carried over to the new Frostbite engine, as well as next generation versions so as to not repeat the same mistake with the previous console generation transition that was NHL 15. NHL 22 will be feature complete on all four platforms, with the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions also moving to the Frostbite engine, while the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions won't be losing any features from the last generation counterpart. This also unlocks specific animations affecting their area of expertise. NHL 22 also introduces Superstar X-Factors, which are abilities that makes superstar players unique, and differentiates them from other players. Additionally, it moves to the next generation consoles PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.

The NHL series jumps to the Frostbite engine, after using the Ignite engine for the previous 7 years. New to NHL 22 is a new game engine and a graphical overhaul. The game features Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews as the cover athlete for the second time in the series, after being the North American cover athlete for NHL 20. It is the first entry in the series to use the Frostbite engine, and utilizes the new game engine on all four platforms. It is the 31st installment in the NHL video game series and was released for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on October 15, 2021. NHL 22 is an ice hockey simulation video game developed by EA Vancouver and published by EA Sports. Standard edition cover art featuring Auston Matthews

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