NHL 08 [X360]

After defeating Ottawa in five games to take the Stanley Cup Wednesday, Anaheim is the new king of hockey.

Well, EA Sports may have to disagree. NHL 08 will build on one of the most exciting sports videogame innovations in years -- the skill stick introduced in NHL 07. EA is looking to take the series to new heights with a new focus on skating, namely shaking defenders out of their dignity. But is NHL 08 good enough to overtake the competition at 2K Sports, the reigning king of videogame hockey? We took a visit to EA Canada to find out.

If you haven't got your hands on the skill stick yet, go rent NHL 07. Now. Basically you use the right analog as your hockey stick, using Fight Night-like combinations to rip off slap shots or triple-deke the goalie to go five-hole and light the lamp. Considering that we had been playing videogame hockey in the same way for, oh, about 15 years, the stick was a major and welcome innovation. Unfortunately for NHL 07, all the focus on the stick and new puck physics came at the expense of decent skating or defense. That's where NHL 08 comes in.

Where NHL 07 was about faking out the goalie, NHL 08 is about embarrassing overzealous defensemen in one-on-one situations. This time around you have the ability to separate the puck from your stick, tap it into space in any direction you like, regain possession and then take your chances with the goalie. We sat with glee watching the Canucks' Daniel Sedin undress a defender, poking the puck between his legs to open up a shot on goal.

This new mechanic is a direct response to defenders checking forwards to the ice every single chance they got. In real hockey, a great puck-handler could lose a defenseman that overcommitted to a check. Unfortunately, players didn't have the toolset to do that in the game -- instead, you would have to slow the attack and wait for a teammate to get open for a pass. In NHL 08, you will have the tools.

Here's how it works. It's a one-on-one matchup and the defender is bearing down on you. Moving the stick left or right won't help you because the defender is ready to knock you off the puck and on your duff. Quickly, you hold the left bumper, or L1 on the PS3, and tap the right stick up and to the right. Your player taps the puck past the defender to the right. At the same time, you skate to the left to avoid the big hit, grab the puck on the other side and continue the break. There are all kinds of stick combinations you can use to undress a defender and EA encourages you to get creative.

As for the shooting mechanic, the skill stick has been refined to reward perfect shooting motions. Pulling down and pushing straight up will result in a dead-on slap shot. If you are slightly off in any direction, your shot will be less accurate, a little idea borrowed from the Tiger Woods analog golf swing.