NHL 23 preview Trevor Zegras

NHL 23 Trailer Revealed - Releases on October 14, EA Play Trial October 11

EA has released their NHL 23 trailer today and announced the game will release on October 14 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The EA Play NHL 23 trial is scheduled to arrive on October 11.

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The NHL 23 X-Factor Edition was also announced today and will include the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 or Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S versions of the game and three days of early access. It also comes with the following items:

  • 4600 NHL Points
  • One HUT X-Factor Player Choice Pack
  • HUT X-Factor Power-Up Starter Pack
  • X-Factor Women’s HUT Choice Pack
  • Five World of Chel X-Factor Zone Ability Unlocks
  • Two Be A Pro X-Factor Slot Unlocks
  • XP Boost and Bonus Trait Points
  • Signed Sarah Nurse World of Chel Jersey

NHL 23 brings fans new levels of authenticity with gameplay improvements that include over 500 new last chance playmaking animations, living arenas and atmosphere, deep franchise-mode customization and new ways to play HUT, including the addition of IIHF Women’s National Teams in HUT, allowing the best women’s and men’s players in the world to compete on one lineup.

Clappy, the NHL 23 community manager, shared a video on Twitter explaining cross platform matchmaking, which makes its debut this year. Check out the NHL 23 trailer below and our preview of the game here to learn about custom franchise, gameplay changes, presentation upgrades and much more.

When it comes to my relationship with EA’s NHL series, I feel like I’ve been in a holding pattern with the series for multiple years at this point. I’m waiting for something that truly rekindles the joy I had when I originally played in the EASHL all the way back in NHL 09. I coasted on that happiness for years, and I would say in general my enjoyment of the series peaked with the series around NHL 14. At that point, NHL was the most played sports game in my library, but since that time it’s ended up being more of a secondary title for me in my personal rankings. I never generally hate the game or anything like that, but it’s also not something that sticks with me in the same way. I say all this to frame how I came into EA’s first presentation for NHL 23. I got to hear from the devs (no hands-on time as of yet) and see what their general philosophy is for this year, so let’s go through that here with this NHL 23 preview.

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Steve Noah
Steve is the Editor in Chief at Operation Sports. He's been here since the year 2000 posting news, features and interviews, along with keeping the hardcore sports gaming community alive and well for over two decades. He covers almost every game related to sports but enjoys basketball, football and baseball games the most.