NHL '94 was released for the Genesis in North America in September 1993, followed by Super NES, Sega CD and MS-DOS versions. It was the first game in EA's NHL series licensed by both the NHL and the NHL Players' Association, and its rosters reflect the 1992-93 season, including the expansion Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and Florida Panthers.
Jim Simmons designed the game, Mark Lesser programmed it and Rob Hubbard wrote the music. It introduced the one-timer and manual goalie control, could save player records and let up to four people play.
In Japan, Victor released the Super Famicom version as NHL Pro Hockey '94 on 8 April 1994. The game sold about one million copies, and in 2020 EA re-released the Genesis version as NHL 94 Rewind with current rosters.1
Names and releases
| Region | Title on the box | Platform | Date | Publisher | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | NHL '94 | Genesis | September 1993 | EA Sports | 1 |
| NA | NHL '94Developed by EA Canada | SNES | November 1993 | EA Sports | 1 |
| NA | NHL HockeyDeveloped by Park Place Productions | MS-DOS | 1993 | Electronic Arts | 1 |
| NA | NHL '94 | Sega CD | January 1994 | EA Sports | 1 |
| EU | NHL '94 | Genesis | October 1993 | EA Sports | 1 |
| EU | NHL '94 | SNES | Mar 31, 1994 | EA Sports | 1 |
| EU | NHL '94 | Sega CD | March 1994 | EA Sports | 1 |
| JP | NHL Pro Hockey '94Super Famicom | SNES | Apr 8, 1994 | Victor | 1 |
| WW | NHL 94 RewindGenesis version via emulation with 2020-21 rosters; first for NHL 21 pre-orders, open to everyone from December 2020; also on Xbox One | PlayStation 4 | Oct 30, 2020 | EA Sports | 1 |
Also known as: NHL Pro Hockey '94 JP1NHL Hockey WW1NHL 94 Rewind WW1
Box art by region
NA NHL '94 
EU NHL '94
Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.
Version differences
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ContentSega CD
Fighting was removed from the Sega CD version at the NHL's request; the CD version adds real NHL footage, and GamePro found its controls better than on cartridge.1
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TextSuper Famicom (JP)
The Japanese Super Famicom version, NHL Pro Hockey '94, has Japanese menus, player names and other text, but its passwords still use Latin letters and numbers.1
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TitleMS-DOS
The MS-DOS version, made by Park Place Productions, was released as NHL Hockey, without '94 in the title.1
Translations
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Japanese Official
Victor1994SNES · SNES versionReleased · complete
The Super Famicom release in Japan has Japanese menus, player names and other text.1
Reception
NHL '94 sold about one million copies and outsold Madden 93. AllGame called it the best-playing hockey game of its time, Computer Gaming World made it a finalist for 1994 Sports Game of the Year, and it has appeared on many all-time lists, including 47th on IGN's 2005 Top 100 Games.1
In lists
Sources
Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13
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