For those who haven't been keeping track of the improvements (news has been coming thick and fast at the moment) I thought I'd post a brief summary:
Be a GM
I thought I'd mention this feature first seeing as it may well appeal to EHM fans regardless of whether or not you've played EA NHL games in the past. Rather than playing every game, you can watch games in sim mode instead. This is very similar to watching games in EHM. It has been designed to look similar to online webcasts of games, and actually looks quite good (here's a screenshot). What with the new sim engine and Action Tracker (see below), it sounds quite promising. The trading AI has also been improved.
New Sim Engine and Action Tracker
The game's sim engine has been completely rewritten from scratch. EA is hyping this as a major improvement. I guess we'll be the judge of this once the game is released. NHL 11 recently did very well in predicting the 2011 Stanley Cup. The new Action Tracker is going to provide a shift-by-shift breakdown of the game's events and stats.
Revamped Be a Pro
Be a Pro was a fantastic new feature when introduced a few years ago. Unfortunately EA hasn't really done that much to improve it since its introduction. It seems things will be changing this year. Most interestingly it'll sim the game whilst you're on the bench. I always used to get bored sitting on the bench waiting for the next shift. It was typically a case of sitting there and watching the players do very little with the puck. Hopefully simming will improve this. It'll also mean that you can play full twenty minute games as you'll only be on the ice for a fraction of the time. It'll be a lot more noticeable and meaningful as you get more and more ice time.
EA also mentions the usual "experience the pursuit of greatness and legendary moments in your playing career, shatter historic records and cement yourself in NHL history". I'm not too sure about this. I'd much rather be a player stuck in the AHL fighting to get a few NHL games rather than becoming the next Gretzky. But perhaps that's just me!
Full Contact Physics Engine
Basically this is a real-time physics engine. Glass can be shattered, helmets can be knocked off, players can be knocked into benches, nets can fly off the moorings, etc. I think the idea is that the effects of hits/collisions are fully simulated rather than being scripted animations. Hopefully it won't mean that every hit resulting in over the top chaos, but instead there will be more lifelike collisions both with objects and other players. It sounds like it'll be most noticeable when fighting for the puck or screening in front of the crease. Players will now stumble and momentarily lose balance rather than simply being dumped onto the ice.
Dynamic Goalies
This will be the first year when goalies are dynamic. In previous games they were quite static in that they couldn't really be interfered with any way - nor could they interact with the game other than skating out of the net a bit and obviously making saves. This year they will be much more interactive. They'll be able to push players out of the way, knock over players, and be knocked over themselves. By the sounds of it, you'll be able to play just like Tim Thomas!
They'll also be able to get into fights.Improved Offensive and Defensive AI
Apparently a great deal of work has been put into improving the offensive and defensive AI. A range of classes/types of forwards and defencemen have been created so that players play with more realistic styles rather than simply being a stay at home defenceman or two way defenceman, etc. Apparently the AI will play more intelligently off the puck. It'll also take more shots rather than continually cycle the puck (as has been a problem in the past).
Presentation
EA is working with a company that designs the graphics for some of the broadcasters that show hockey on TV. This should mean better presentation and better in game graphics (e.g. the scoreboard and clock in the top corner of the screen).
Winter Classic
The Heinz Field Winter Classic is going to feature in the game. I believe you jump right into this game as soon as you load NHL 12 for the first time.
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