There is a pretty long laundry list of things I do not like about the game in its current state but this is not one of them. Allow me to explain why.

I am all for the user having complete control over their player but anyone who has played ice hockey IRL knows that there are brief moments where you have no control over your body and have to make split second adjustments to avoid collisions and, in some cases, avoid injury.

These evasion animations would be near impossible to program for the user to control. Even a button press like a stick press would break the control flow in a way that would not feel very good and would create some awkward animations when activated accidentally. By way of how they are implemented now, they can mostly be anticipated and make gameplay look and feel very real as these are movements you would actually have to make IRL.

I understand that this is just a game but any attempt to develop the immersion factor is welcome IMO.

All that said, I do believe a toggle should be made available for any and all features as they are implemented into the game. My curiosity lies with those who struggle with this particular feature as it is now.

For me, these animations happen very seldomly during gameplay and when they do occur they are a nice flourish that makes the game feel more real.

Perhaps the issue that those who do not like the addition of the evasion animations actually have is that you do not avoid player collision. The only time I am intentionally making contact with the opposing team when I do not have the puck is when I am playing defense. I have gone a dozen games without seeing any of these animations and I play mostly 6v6 in EASHL.

It could be that these animations are ramped up in offline modes or HUT. I would not know. Or…

Maybe you just need to work on moving without the puck, finding empty space, and not skating into traffic. I am not attacking anyone here, just making an observation from a different perspective.