I just don't have fun with this team. I'd rather have games be 10-0 and lose every game with a team I like playing than win ever game with a team I hate playing with. I will appreciate any and all tips to get better, but still will hate this team. I think the biggest part is I'm so close to the cap. Having the cap so unbalanced just pisses me off. Go from unbalanced teams to unbalanced caps. Sort of again pick your evil and I hate that. Hell we might as well have had a draft. If that can even be done.
I get that. I guess I just don't see where you think your team is really lacking. We've all looked at the rosters, and the Blues are still pretty stacked. I think the lowest rated forward on your top line was like an 87. That would be the best player on several teams.
About the cap...I agree. But the regular rosters were like that too. In our last season, I had a terrible Preds team and only $250K cap space. I could barely call a player up from the AHL without putting somebody on waivers. Like I've said before, you can make moves...but you're going to have to dump a big contract for a smaller contract. It's not necessarily going to be easy and will take some thought. But it's not impossible. I opened up $3M with one trade. You just have to look at it like a puzzle and find the solution.
And sadly, we can't have a draft. We definitely would have gone that route had it been possible. The game doesn't have a fantasy draft option. Maybe next year! Yeah...
As for tips, personally, I think you're a little too aggressive on defense. Sometimes you'll lose your positioning from going for a hit with one guy, and then if he misses, switching to another guy to try the same thing. It creates a situation where players are left wide open (often in front of the net). I felt like our past couple games, I was getting a lot of high percentage scoring chances as a result.
Unlike last year's game, being 1 on 1 with the goalie or having a 2 on 1 SHOULD result in a goal a lot of the time. Letting people get past you is just deadly in this game. Keeping the puck carrier in front of you and anticipating his move can make a world of difference to your overall defense. Lunging at hits from a mile away makes them easy to avoid. Unless you get a really good feel for where the puck carrier is going to go (and even then, people can still surprise you), you're probably better off keeping moderate pressure on him with stick checks rather than trying to flatten him.