NHL 12: Build of the Week -- Playmaker Winger

This is going to be (hopefully) a regular feature where once a week I put up a build and explain the thought process behind it. It may be one of my actual builds or just something I am thinking about. I may eventually ask for submissions for builds other people run but let's see if I can get a couple of these up in a row before we get too crazy.

The build for this week is what I am running currently:

Link to the player creator for this build

Playmaker (LW) (Legend 2)

5'9"

164 lbs.

11" skates

Regular stick flex

Second stick curve from the bottom

Deking: 99

Hand Eye: 94 (+5)

Off Awareness: 94 (+5)

Passing: 95

Puck Control: 94 (+5)

SS Accuracy: 70 (+5)

SS Power: 52

WS Accuracy: 85 (+5)

WS Power: 70

Aggression: 40

Body Check: 40

Def Awareness: 84

Discipline: 99

Faceoffs: 60

Fighting: 40

Shot Blocking: 60

Stick Check: 90 (+5)

Acceleration: 71

Agility: 83 (+5)

Balance: 69 (+5)

Durability: 60

Endurance: 94 (+5)

Speed: 80 (+8)

Strength: 65 (+5)

I think playing small this year for forwards is a lot more viable than last year so this forward is pretty tiny and very quick. I do throw in a bit of strength to be able to take a hit effectively. I also bumped up acceleration a bit from base. Defensively this build is all about the poke check and as high a defensive awareness as I can get. The first 5 offensive categories are mostly 99s but I run 95 passing because 99 just feels off to me. The shots are a 70/90 wrister and a slap shot with a 75 accuracy. I can hit the corners a lot with the wrister and the slapshot seems just accurate enough. More points are probably going there once I get that last card.

If you use this build you want to use your speed to back off defenders and pass the puck quite a bit. Try to avoid getting run over. This build is sturdier than playmaker last year but not able to absorb huge hits. When you don't have the puck get to open space. This build is also not bad at creating solo chances and scoring off the rush.