NHL 11 Strategy - The Value of Chemistry in NHL 11 HUT

What is chemistry in NHL 11?

It's a rating of the player familiarity with his linemates, and so far, chemistry appears to be overlooked in the vast majority of HUT teams that I see online.

What does chemistry do in NHL 11?

It gives a noticeable boost to many aspects of the game, but especially passing. Passing in NHL 11 is one of the hardest things to get used to from previous NHL titles, and in NHL 11 HUT, you can improve yours by building chemistry. My passing success rate must have went up 10% since getting all of my lines chemistry up over 90 points. I think this is not only that they won't bobble hard passes as much, but because the AI positions players slightly better to receive these passes.

How do you create chemistry in NHL 11?

In order of best chemistry to worst chemistry:

3 linemates from the same team,
2 linemates from the same team, plus one from the same league
3 players from the same league
2 players from the same league, plus one from the same locale (ie. 2 from NHL + 1 from AHL is better than 2 from NHL + 1 from DEL)
3 players from the same locale
2 players from the same locale, plus one from outside locale

AND

Try to put everyone in the position they're supposed to play. Don't put a C in an LW's spot, and don't put an RD on the left. Be sure to mix it up as well as far as player types go (Don't put 3 grinders on one line).


BUT

This only applies to your 4 offensive lines and your 3 defensive pairs. Powerplay, penalty kill lines, and goalies have no bearing on your teams chemistry.

Is chemistry really worth it?

I think so. My front line are the Ducks' Blake + Koivu + Lupul and I much prefer their performance than that of the demo's Zetterberg + Malkin + Perry line I used a bunch.

Best thing to do is try playing around with it.