nhl

Before 2007, the 2K series of hockey video games was tough to match. It seemed 2K had a perfect sense of gameplay, physics, and true-to-life NHL action. When EA Sports revamped its franchise in NHL 07 by introducing the Skill Stick and a new game engine, the tide immediately turned.

With the 2009-2010 NHL season fast approaching, both hockey games look to improve on their respective formulas. While each game tries to create an accurate hockey simulation experience, only one title is able to deliver a winning combination.… Read more

Ask any diehard hockey fan out there and he'll tell you that last year's NHL 09 was close to being the best hockey game ever made. After countless critical acclaim and 19 sports-game-of-the-year awards over the past two years, the EA Canada team is back with NHL 10.

Along with Chicago Blackhawks young superstar Patrick Kane as this year's featured cover athlete, the game promises plenty of improvements, from board play to first-person fighting.

We sat down and played a full three periods in Stanley Cup Final fashion, Penguins versus Red Wings, to find out what's new in NHL 10.… Read more

Keeping dates and times straight is a necessity in today's overbooked world. Cotton Calendar claims to be a dynamic program to help users get themselves organized, but it falls flat on nearly every promise it makes.

This program looks about as simple as a calendar can. It features a small month-view calendar with some simple buttons along the top. Users can cycle through the months and year by using these buttons, but they are very confusing. The monthly view of the calendar is disappointing because users cannot intuitively click on a day and add a note. While we acknowledge … Read more

James Balsillie, co-CEO of RIM, doesn't tilt at windmills. He butts them with the hardest part of his skull.

Which, when it comes to the crusty, decaying, worm-infested windmill that is the National Hockey League, is no bad idea at all. Rather a hockeyish gesture, too.

The National Hockey League is about as relevant to U.S. sport as the HGH-free baseball player.

Please try wafting down the street and bellowing about the NHL playoffs, which are currently occurring to a national indifference only rivaled, perhaps, by the interest in Tara Reid's welfare. You will be greeted with … Read more

Some Blues Traveler and a box of Glazed Pop'ems warm us up for another fantastic show. Just the three of us today. Justin is still trying to recover from his night out with the Jasmine France.

On today's show, we geek out a little bit when we discuss the new "Star Trek" movie by director JJ Abrams. Caroline McCarthy got a sneak peak at it last night, and makes Wilson, the only Trekkie on the show, jealous. Justin gets into the finer points of things when he argues which is better: "Battlestar Galactica," "Star Wars," or "Star Trek". Wilson thinks this is a no-brainer.

Also on today's show, find out why Kevin Smith got "Wayne Gretzky-ed" off NHL.com's blog. Google makes it a little easier to build a custom search profile. Unfortunately, they can't take those drunken, nude pics of you off the Web. And two dudes get a $26,000 bill from T-Mobile after they send each other over 217,000 text messages. That's true bromance. The box to send the bill alone cost $27.55.

We honestly can't think of worse app for the iPhone than the apparent baby-shaking app! We can't even pretend to make a joke about this one. We're just surprised that it made it passed Apple's strict vetting.

Finally, Wilson's subway stalker calls The 404 and tells us about her upcoming surgery. He's shaking in a corner about it. Send us your voice mails at 1-866-404-CNET (2638). Stalkers welcomed.

Please make contact with that deep and joyous part of you that is passive-aggressive.

Yes, the part of you that wants to remove the man sitting and spitting in the seat in front of you at an NFL game, or the lady who is flipping everyone off at a baseball game (probably a Yankees fan). Yes, the part of you that doesn't want to get involved in finger gestures, f-words, or fisticuffs.

Rejoice, because the wonders of texting can now be brought to bear down on the miscreants of the sports arena. All you have to do is know … Read more

If it's a crisp-looking score-tracking app you're looking for that follows major U.S. sports associations and leagues, you've come to the right place. The free Sportacular is abound with week-by-week standings and scores that auto-update every 30 seconds when there's a game on. The flood of stats is easily navigated and read thanks to well-placed tabs and menus. You can view updated stats by player and by team, and can even create and track your own fantasy team. Sportacular also keeps fans up-to-date on their sport with RSS feeds from ESPN, Yahoo, and FOX. In … Read more

The National Hockey League figures its teams do a pretty good job of connecting with the ice junkies in their own backyards.

But the league reckons that many of the 20 million hockey fans in North America don't live near their favorite teams. The league is hoping that improvements to its subscription video service will appeal to the diaspora.

The league has been streaming video for a while now, said Perry Cooper, the NHL's senior vice president of direct and digital marketing. As it did last year, those that pay $159 a year ($169 after October 15) gain … Read more

NOVATO, Calif.--Over on one side of the synthetic hockey rink, the director yelled out, "Motion-capture ready?"

The technician answered, "Ready."

The director then shouted out, "Actor ready?"

NHL star Rick Nash, a left wing for the Columbus Blue Jackets answered back, "Ready."

Nash was on hand, even as the Stanley Cup Finals are still in progress, because he's the cover star for 2K Sports' forthcoming hockey video game, NHL 2K9. And he was here, in this small studio in a nondescript office park for an all-day motion-capture filming session for … Read more