NHL Defenseman Builder
Build Your Own D-Man
Build your own NHL defenseman by combining attributes from hockey legends. Spin ten players, keep one attribute from each, complete your custom D-man, then simulate an 84-game NHL season to see how your creation performs.
An 84-0 lab experiment · more games
About the NHL Defenseman Builder
What makes a great defenseman? Is it shutting down the opposition, moving the puck, creating offense, or doing a bit of everything? The NHL Defenseman Builder lets you test those ideas by combining individual skills from some of hockey's greatest players.
You'll spin for ten different NHL players and choose one attribute from each. By the time you're done, you'll have a custom defenseman built from a combination of legends, modern stars and unexpected choices. Then comes the real test: putting that player through a full 84-game NHL season.
How does the NHL Defenseman Builder work?
Each round gives you a randomly selected NHL player and a set of attributes. You can keep exactly one skill before moving on to the next selection.
You get ten spins in total, along with three passes. A pass lets you reject a selection when nothing looks right, but you only have three chances to do it. Using them too early can leave you stuck with a weaker option later, so timing matters.
What skills can you choose for your defenseman?
The available attributes represent different parts of a defenseman's game, including skating, shooting, passing, blocking and other skills that influence how your player performs.
That's where the combinations get interesting. You could take elite skating from one player, a powerful shot from another and defensive ability from a completely different era. The finished player might look nothing like any single NHL star — and that's the point.
What happens after you finish your D-man?
Once all ten selections are complete, your custom defenseman enters an 84-game season simulation.
The simulation puts your choices to the test across a full NHL schedule. You'll be able to see how your player performs in areas such as goals, assists and total points.
A high overall rating doesn't automatically guarantee a great season. The challenge is finding a combination of skills that works well together once your player actually takes the ice.
Can I compare my defenseman with other players?
Yes. Completed builds can be saved to the global leaderboard, where you can see how your creation compares with other 84-0 players.
You can also switch between the Current Era and All-Time player pools, giving you two different ways to approach the challenge. Try building around modern stars one run and hockey legends the next to see which approach produces the better result.
Once you've made a defenseman you're proud of, you can generate a shareable player card and show the result to friends.
Can you build a defenseman worthy of Bobby Orr?
That's the ultimate challenge.
Bobby Orr changed the way the defenseman position could be played, combining elite defensive ability with extraordinary offensive production. Your custom player gets an entire 84-game season to chase the kind of numbers associated with hockey's greatest defensemen.
There isn't a guaranteed formula for getting there. Every run gives you different players and different decisions. Use your passes carefully, build around the weaknesses you need to fix, and see whether your creation can put together a season worthy of the record books.
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Keep testing your hockey knowledge with more NHL games on 84-0:
Full rules, records and strategy live in the Build a Player game guide.