EA Sports’ newest installment to the NHL video game franchise, NHL 23, was released on Friday, October 14, 2022. I purchased the game and was able to dive into the Calgary Flames’ official ratings for the game. I’ll be taking a look at those ratings and judging if they’re too high, too low, or just right.
Jonathan Huberdeau – 92 OVR
Jonathan Huberdeau‘s 92 overall rating places him as the best left wing in the game and second best winger only behind Patrick Kane. There’s quite a few players that I would consider better than Huberdeau that have lower overalls such as Brad Marchand (91), Kirill Kaprizov (91), and Mitch Marner (90). I think with that being considered, I would drop Huberdeau down to a 91 overall.
Verdict: Too high — Change: -1
Jacob Markstrom – 90 OVR
Jacob Markstrom is the fourth highest rated goalie in NHL 23 trailing only Andrei Vasilevskiy, Igor Shesterkin, and Connor Hellebuyck. I don’t think Markstrom should be the fourth highest rated goalie in the game but that’s more of a problem with the other goalies ratings than his.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
Elias Lindholm – 89 OVR
Elias Lindholm ranks just outside of the top 10 centres in the game with his 89 rating. This rating puts him in the same tier of players such as Patrice Bergeron, Sebastian Aho, and Dylan Larkin, which to me is pretty much perfect.
Verdict: Just right — Change: none
Nazem Kadri – 88 OVR
Nazem Kadri’s career year has him as an 88 overall in NHL 23. I might say this rating is too high if Trevor Zegras wasn’t an 87 but he is, so an 88 for Kadri seems good.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
MacKenzie Weegar – 86 OVR
MacKenzie Weegar’s rating is the first one I have a problem with. His 86 rating puts him behind quite a few players that I think he’s better than. I think making him an 88 which would make him the same rating as Dougie Hamilton, Kris Letang, and Morgan Rielly among others, would be perfect.
Verdict: Too low — Change: +2
Rasmus Andersson – 85 OVR
Rasmus Andersson was given an 85 rating for bouncing back in the 2021–22 season. 85 overall puts him as a defender who would be a high-tier second pair guy or a low-tier first pair guy which I think is perfect.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
Andrew Mangiapane – 85 OVR
An 85 rating for Andrew Mangiapane would be good if I wasn’t such a big fan of his game. I think that all the dimensions Mangiapane has in his game such as two way, goal scoring, forechecking, etc., makes him worthy of an 86.
Verdict: Too low — Change: +1
Tyler Toffoli – 85 OVR
Tyler Toffoli would be deserving of an 85 rating in many other years but his struggles this past season make me think that an 84 is a fairer rating.
Verdict: Too high — Change: -1
Noah Hanifin – 85 OVR
Just like Andersson, an 85 puts Noah Hanifin as a defender who is high-tier second pair guy or low-tier first pair guy. I think Hanifin has proven himself a bit more than Andersson and is deserving of being 1 overall higher.
Verdict: Too low — Change: +1
Chris Tanev – 84 OVR
Chris Tanev’s 84 is another rating I have a bigger problem with. He’s continued to be one of the best defensive defenceman while logging 20+ minutes these past few years and I think an 84 is disrespectful. To me, an 86 for Tanev would be perfect.
Verdict: Too low — Change: +2
Mikael Backlund – 83 OVR
Mikael Backlund’s 83 ratings puts him as a strong middle-six centre which what I think Backlund exactly is, no complaints from me on this rating.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
Blake Coleman – 82 OVR
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Blake Coleman is the perfect middle-six winger. Coleman can play top-six if needed and is a good two-way forward among other things so I think 82 is just a bit too low and an 83 would be more suitable.
Verdict: Too low — Change: +1
Oliver Kylington – 82 OVR
An 82 is perfect for the situation Oliver Kylington faces in my opinion. If this wasn’t his first full year in the show I would argue he needs to be higher, but because it was his first, he’s trying to prove himself as a legit top-fouur defender and an 82 is perfect for a player facing that situation.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
Dan Vladar – 82 OVR
Dan Vladar‘s solid rookie campaign has given him an 82 rating. In my eyes, Vladar could easily be an 81 or 82 but it’s much more simpler to keep him at what he is already.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
Dillon Dube – 81 OVR
Dillon Dube has shown that he can be rated higher than an 81 but his inconsistency and streaky play make me think that an 81 is good for now.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
Nikita Zadorov – 81 OVR
Nikita Zadorov has been rewarded an 81 rating after playing the best hockey of his career. I think this rating is perfect for him, it makes him a really solid third pair guy that’s not quite good enough to play in the top-four.
Verdict: Just right — Change: None
Milan Lucic – 79 OVR
Milan Lucic‘s rating is almost good, but a 79 rating to me means this player can play on either the 3rd or 4th line and in my opinion, Lucic is a bonafide 4th liner who would struggle on the 3rd line, so I think an 78 is more appropriate
Verdict: Too high — Change: -1
Trevor Lewis – 78 OVR
I have spoke about my distaste for Trevor Lewis before, so it may come as a surprise that I think he should only be dropped one rating down to a 77.
Verdict: Too high — Change: -1
Adam Ruzicka – 78 OVR
I think a 78 is perfect for Adam Ruzicka, but in a realistic sense, he is being scratched over players such as Lewis and Brett Ritchie, so in that case, a 77 seems right.
Verdict: Too high — Change: -1
Kevin Rooney – 76 OVR
Here is another player I’m not a huge fan of but I think EA nailed Kevin Rooney’s rating and a 76 is perfect.
Verdict: Just right — Changes: None
Brett Ritchie – 76 OVR
Brett Ritchie is around the same tier of player as Lewis so surprisingly, I think he should go up one rating to a 77.
Verdict: Too low — Change: +1
Michael Stone – 75 OVR
Michael Stone has finally won Flames fans over (myself included) with some decent play in a limited role and I think a 75 is quite a bit too low. I think a 77 is more fitting as it’s not the best for a full-time player, but good for a seventh defenceman.
Verdict: Too low — Changes: +2
Connor Mackey – 74 OVR
I think a 74 overall is straight up disrespectful to Connor Mackey. He’s shown that he can play in the NHL and I think a 77 rating is perfect for a player looking to crack the team but just hasn’t been given enough playing time.
Verdict: Too low — Change: +3
Overall thoughts
In my opinion, EA sports did a good job rating the Flames this time around. I thought a good amount of them were the perfect rating. The majority of ratings I thought were too low or too high were just off by one rating.
