Pocket Hockey Manager - Tutorial & Feature Guide

Pocket Hockey Manager (PHM) is a long-term hockey team management game: you build and run a club over multiple seasons, not a single match. You never control players directly during games. Instead, you make the decisions that shape how the team performs - roster, contracts, training, lineups, energy, tactics, finances, arena, staff - and then let the result play out.

PHM is also persistent and multiplayer. The other teams in your league and the managers you deal with in the transfer market are real people making their own decisions, and those decisions affect your team just as yours affect theirs.

You are building a hockey organization, not just assembling a collection of highly rated players.

1. The Beginning

What is PHM?

PHM combines hockey management with a persistent multiplayer economy and competition system - your team develops over time instead of resetting after every match. The core management loop repeats every season:

1. Build and manage your roster.
2. Manage contracts and salaries.
3. Train and develop players.
4. Manage player energy and availability.
5. Build effective lines and choose tactics.
6. Play scheduled games.
7. Earn and manage money.
8. Develop your arena and organization.
9. Use the player market to improve your team.
10. Compete for playoffs, promotion, or survival.
11. Repeat and improve over multiple seasons.

Every part of that loop pulls on the others. A better player raises results but also salary costs. A bigger arena lifts matchday revenue but needs investment up front. A trade can upgrade the roster immediately while wrecking established chemistry. Training raises a young player's future value, but training effectiveness depends on energy.

Starting a new team

New teams usually start with enough money to afford relatively strong players, but that's not the same as being equal to an established club - older organizations build up advantages over time through players, facilities, staff, finances, experience, and development. Don't spend it all just because you can. You're laying the foundation for a club that has to stay competitive and financially healthy for many seasons.

Your role as manager

Managing PHM means constantly balancing competing priorities:

• Immediate performance versus long-term development.
• Player ability versus chemistry and tactical fit.
• Playing your best players versus preserving their energy.
• Buying talent versus maintaining financial stability.
• Investing in players versus investing in the arena and organization.
• Winning now versus building a stronger team for future seasons.

Few of these trade-offs have one correct answer in every situation.

2. Your First Game

Prepare your roster

Before a game, look past individual player ratings. Weigh these when picking a lineup:

• Player ability.
• Player energy.
• Player traits.
• Existing chemistry.
• Shared history between players.
• Tactical fit.
• Injuries and player availability.
• Temporary player effects.

The highest-rated players are not automatically the best possible combination.

Build your lines

Line construction is one of the most important strategic decisions in PHM. A line is more than a list of individually strong players - players build chemistry through shared playing history, and traits affect how well they mesh. Say two players have similar individual ability: Player A has played extensively with the rest of the line and has strong chemistry with them, while Player B rates slightly higher individually but has no history with that line. Swapping in Player B is not automatically an upgrade.

A slightly weaker player can be the better choice if he fits the line substantially better.

Choose line tactics

PHM lets you configure line tactics on top of roster construction. When preparing for a game, think about the complete combination:

• Who is playing.
• Who is playing together.
• How much energy they have.
• What traits and chemistry they bring.
• Which tactical approach you assign.

Match preview

The match preview lets you prepare for the upcoming game before it's simulated. Since games are simulated rather than manually controlled, this preparation is where most of your influence on the outcome actually happens.

Simulating the game

Games are simulated automatically - you do not control individual players during the match. Your management decisions shape the conditions the simulation runs on: roster construction, player selection, energy, development, chemistry, lineup configuration, and tactics all feed into the team's preparation.

Match report

After the game, the match report lets you review what happened, covering:

• Shots.
• Scoring chances.
• Goals.
• Penalties.
• Power plays.
• Hits.
• Saves.
• Game momentum chart.

Don't judge a management decision solely by the final score. A single result is one event in a much longer season.

Game flow and momentum

PHM tracks momentum and game flow throughout a match, so you can review how control shifted over time instead of looking only at the final score. The system factors in possession, shots, scoring chances, goals, hits, power plays, penalty kills, and saves, and can display the result as a momentum timeline after the match - similar in concept to an NHL-style game-flow chart.

3. Players

Players are more than ratings

A player's attributes matter, but they are not the whole story. Player traits and training success can shift career trajectories.

Age

Players age by one year every season, which matters when deciding whether a player is an immediate contributor, a long-term investment, or an aging asset to value differently. A young player carries more time to develop; an older player can offer stronger immediate value depending on his ability and role.

Player traits

Player traits are part of a player's identity and affect chemistry and lineup fit. Don't judge them in isolation - their value depends partly on the players around them and the lineup you're building.

Player history and chemistry

Players build chemistry through a history of playing together, so roster changes can cost more than the simple swap of one rating for another. If a line has developed strong chemistry over many games and you find a slightly better individual player, replacing the incumbent may still not be the right move if it sacrifices that chemistry.

Lineup optimization is about combinations, not just rankings.

4. Player Development & Training

Training is a long-term investment

Players train through programs you manage. Treat training as part of a long-term development strategy, not just a way to boost the lineup immediately - a developing player can become an important asset both on the ice and in the player market.

Training and energy are connected

Training effectiveness depends on player energy, which creates a real trade-off: playing players uses them up in competitive games, overuse hurts performance and training, resting recovers energy, and higher energy supports more effective training.

There's no universally correct call on whether a player should play or rest - it depends on your upcoming schedule and development priorities.

Training programs

You control training programs directly, so choices should reflect the role you want a player to fill and the team's long-term needs. Manager-Pro adds training program presets to speed up repeated tasks.

5. Energy, Injuries & Player Condition

Energy

Player energy is a management resource that changes over time: rest recovers it, overuse drains it, and it affects both match performance and training effectiveness. Manage it across your whole schedule, not just before the next game.

Rest versus immediate performance

Playing your strongest players constantly maximizes short-term lineup strength, but excessive use hurts their performance and training. A good manager weighs future games as well as the current one.

Injuries

Players can get injured and miss games - how many depends on severity, and an injury can force you to rework lines, adjust tactics, and reconsider how hard you push the players who remain. Injuries matter because they inject uncertainty into roster planning: a lineup that looks ideal today may not be available for the next game.

Temporary player flags

Players can also pick up temporary flags representing psychological or situational effects. Known examples:

These are temporary, not permanent changes to the player - another reason not to judge players purely by their fixed attributes. Current situation matters too.

6. Player Chemistry & Lineup Building

Why chemistry matters

PHM's chemistry system means players are not independent units - they build chemistry with teammates through shared history, and traits shape that further. As a result, the strongest lineup on paper is not always the strongest lineup in practice.

Think in combinations

When building a line, weigh the interaction between individual ability, traits, existing chemistry, shared history, energy, and tactical fit. A player's value is partly contextual - the same player can be worth more in one line than another purely because of his relationships with his teammates.

Changing a successful line

Don't assume a higher-rated replacement is automatically an improvement. If an established line is performing well with strong chemistry, swapping a member needs a clear reason - a small rating bump rarely justifies losing chemistry that took time to build.

7. Contracts & Negotiations

Contracts are strategic commitments

Player contracts set long-term salary commitments, tying the roster directly to team finances. Signing a player is a financial decision as much as a sporting one - you're committing part of the club's future budget to him.

Extension contracts

To keep a player already on your team, send him an extension contract offer. He won't respond immediately - expect a reply within 12 hours - so contract planning is inherently asynchronous. Extensions can be offered until the trade deadline.

Plan extensions early

Waiting until the last moment to lock in an important player is a risk you don't need to take. As the trade deadline approaches, you have fewer options if he doesn't agree to an extension or your roster plans change.

Free-agent contracts

Free agents can receive offers from any manager, and the player picks whichever contract he considers best - a decision that's asynchronous and usually takes a few days. This creates real competition: you can make an attractive offer and still lose the player to a better one from another team.

Buyouts

Player contracts can be bought out, letting you terminate a deal at a financial cost. This is useful when a player no longer fits your sporting or financial plans, but the cost means walking away from a contract is never free.

Contracts and trades

Contract decisions can interact with pending trades - a player may be tied up in a trade while contract actions are being considered. Track a player's transaction status before making major roster commitments.

8. Transfers & Player Market

A player-driven market

PHM uses a fully floating player market - prices are set by supply and demand rather than fixed NPC prices, so the market is shaped directly by other human managers' decisions. Player value moves with quality, demand, supply, age, development potential, contract situation, and other market conditions.

Buying players

Buying a player is an investment, and the purchase price is only part of the cost - also weigh salary, contract, role, chemistry, energy, development potential, and fit with your existing roster. A cheaper player who fits your system can outperform an expensive one with a higher individual rating.

Selling players

Selling generates cash and frees salary capacity, but it can also weaken the lineup or remove a player with valuable chemistry. Before selling, weigh what you're actually giving up:

• Current playing ability.
• Line chemistry.
• Future development.
• Roster depth.
• Potential market value.

Trade offers

Managers negotiate directly with other teams through trade offers, which can include players and cash - more flexible than a simple purchase. Offers can stay pending and carry closing or expiration conditions.

Trading with human managers

Because other teams are run by real managers, there's no guarantee the player you want is available at a price you'd expect. Another manager may value him differently, have a different roster need, or simply refuse to sell - the transfer market is part of the game's social and strategic competition.

Trade deadline

Trades and extension contracts run until the trade deadline, usually around round 19 of the regular season - after that, these transactions are restricted, making the deadline an important strategic checkpoint. Before it arrives, ask yourself:

• Which positions need strengthening?
• Which players need extensions?
• Which players might be worth selling?
• Do you need additional depth?
• Are you building for the current season or future seasons?

9. Season Schedule

Regular season

The regular season runs four games per week, setting a recurring management rhythm: prepare lineups, manage energy, watch injuries, evaluate results, and plan for the next games - on repeat.

The season is a continuous management problem

Because games run all season, decisions shouldn't be made in isolation. Playing an important player every game can win you several immediate matches, but overuse hurts performance and training - resting him costs you strength today but leaves him sharper for later games.

Trade deadline

The season includes a trade deadline, generally around round 19 - trades and extensions are available until then and restricted afterward. It creates a natural point where you must decide if your current roster is good enough for the rest of the season.

Playoffs

Playoffs are played as best-of-three series, which demands more than a single-game mindset - lineup, energy, injuries, and roster depth all matter across multiple games.

10. League System, Promotion & Relegation

League competition

The regular season determines league standings, and each league has its own referees - part of the competitive environment you're playing in.

Relegation

At the end of the regular season, the bottom two teams are relegated to the lower division. That gives a team near the bottom of the standings a very different objective from one near the top - for a struggling team, survival can matter more than aggressive long-term investment.

Promotion

The playoff winner from each sister league is promoted to the higher division, giving every team an incentive to peak when the season reaches its decisive stage.

Different teams, different objectives

11. Playoffs

Playoffs are played as best-of-three series, which changes how you should think about the end of the season - reaching the playoffs is not the same as being ready to win a series. Managers should weigh player availability, energy management, injury depth, line chemistry, tactical choices, and roster quality.

The playoff phase is where your decisions across the whole season get put under pressure.

12. Team Finances

Your cash balance

Every team carries a cash balance representing the financial resources available to the organization, and it has to cover both immediate expenses and longer-term investments.

The balance ledger

PHM provides a balance ledger where you can review financial transactions and see where money is coming from and going to. Good financial management starts with understanding your actual cash flow, not guessing at it.

Salaries connect the roster to the economy

Players aren't free to maintain - contracts create salary commitments, creating a direct chain:

Better players → potentially higher salary commitments → higher ongoing expenses → greater need for sustainable revenue.

A roster that looks excellent on the ice can still be a poor management decision if its costs put the organization under excessive financial pressure.

The wider team economy

The financial system forms an interconnected chain:

Players → salaries → team finances → home games → audience capacity → kiosk revenue → sponsors → arena investment → staff → sporting performance → league progression.

Improving one link in that chain can move the others.

13. Sponsors & Revenue

Sponsors

Sponsors provide team revenue - you can secure sponsorship for individual home games or lock in a season sponsor. Staff can improve sponsor revenue too, another link between organizational development and finances.

Kiosk revenue

The kiosk sells food and drinks during home games, so kiosk revenue tracks home-game attendance and forms part of the broader matchday economy.

Audience capacity

Your arena's audience capacity sets how many spectators you can fit, and increasing it can grow the team's home-game revenue:

More capacity → greater potential attendance → greater matchday revenue potential.

The key word is potential. Treat arena investment as part of your overall financial strategy, not an automatic source of profit.

14. Arena & Facilities

Developing your arena

Your arena develops over time. One major investment is audience capacity - a larger arena supports greater attendance and grows the team's home-game revenue potential.

Arena facilities

The arena also has facilities you can construct and upgrade. Known facilities:

Facilities offer different benefits and form part of your long-term organizational investment.

Do not treat the arena as separate from the team

Arena development ties into the rest of your organization - money spent on the arena is money not spent on players or elsewhere, but stronger matchday infrastructure supports future revenue. The best investment depends on your club's current situation.

15. Staff

Staff can be hired to improve the organization - they boost team performance and sponsor revenue, giving you a way to strengthen the club without simply buying better players. Weigh staff investment alongside roster, arena, and financial decisions.

16. Daily Activity

One strategic decision per day

Daily Activity gives you one strategic decision per day. Options carry different benefits and trade-offs, so the best choice depends on your team's current situation - the goal isn't to act as often as possible, but to make a useful call at the right time.

Think beyond today's game

Since you only get one decision a day, don't default to the same benefit every time. Base it on:

• Upcoming games.
• Current roster condition.
• Financial situation.
• Long-term development goals.
• Your position in the league.

17. Matches, Match Reports & Game Flow

Games are simulated

PHM is a management simulation - you don't control players manually during a game. The simulation evaluates the conditions your management decisions created, so your most important match decisions happen before the puck drops:

• Roster selection.
• Line construction.
• Energy management.
• Player development.
• Handling injuries.
• Player chemistry.
• Line tactics.

Understanding the result

A match result is an outcome, not a full explanation. The match report and game-flow information let you dig into what actually happened and how the match developed.

Momentum

PHM tracks momentum throughout the match, factoring in:

• Possession.
• Shots.
• Scoring chances.
• Goals.
• Hits.
• Power plays.
• Penalty kills.
• Saves.

The resulting timeline shows how the balance of the game shifted over time.

18. Social / MMO Features

Real managers create the market

PHM is an MMO-style management game - other teams are run by real managers, and that changes how you should think about the game. Other managers:

• Own competing teams.
• Buy and sell players.
• Influence player prices.
• Compete for free agents.
• Send trade offers.
• Compete for league success.
• Influence the player-driven economy.

The market cannot be treated like a static single-player transfer list.

Supply and demand

Prices move with supply and demand as managers buy, sell, develop, and search for players. A player cheap today can get more valuable as demand rises, while one with little demand can be hard to sell regardless of ability.

Town Square

Town Square is PHM's social and communication hub, where managers can chat with each other. Remember that other managers are real people, and treat them with respect. It complements the player-driven economy by giving managers a place to talk within the persistent game world.

19. Fair Play & Fraud Prevention

PHM runs on a player-driven economy, so protecting the integrity of transactions matters. Fraud-prevention mechanisms detect suspicious activity, and administrators can investigate suspicious trades or contracts and cancel transactions when necessary - to protect:

• The integrity of the transfer market.
• The competitive environment.
• Other managers from abusive transactions.
• The long-term health of the in-game economy.

Use the game's transaction systems legitimately. Suspicious transactions can and will be reviewed.

20. Manager-Pro

Manager-Pro is a subscription focused on convenience and management assistance: lineup presets, training program presets, a player watchlist, no advertisements, and a team page color theme editor.

These features streamline repetitive tasks - they don't replace the core management gameplay.

21. How the Systems Fit Together

The most important thing for a new manager to understand: PHM's systems are interconnected.

Roster and finances

Better players raise sporting performance, but their contracts create salary obligations - roster building affects finances, and finances limit the roster you can sustainably maintain.

Roster quality → salaries → cash flow → available budget → future roster decisions.

Roster and chemistry

Buying a stronger individual player doesn't automatically produce a stronger lineup - changing a line can cost established chemistry, so the right call depends on both individual ability and how the player fits his teammates.

Roster and energy

Playing your strongest players constantly boosts immediate match strength, but overuse hurts performance and training - energy management shapes both short-term results and long-term development.

Energy and training

Training effectiveness depends on energy, so resting players can be part of a development strategy, not just prep for the next game.

Injuries and roster depth

Injuries can sideline players for multiple games depending on severity, so a roster with no depth stays vulnerable even when its first-choice lineup is excellent.

Market and finances

The player market lets you convert money into players and players into money, but since prices move with supply and demand, there's no guarantee a player holds his value later.

Contracts and the market

Contract situation is one factor behind market value - a player with an unfavorable contract is effectively a different asset than an identical player with a favorable one.

Arena and revenue

Audience capacity drives home-game revenue potential; the kiosk earns from home-game audiences, and sponsors add further revenue - all of it available to reinvest in the organization.

Staff and performance

Staff can improve both team performance and sponsorship revenue, so organizational investment can complement player investment directly.

League progression and finances

Sporting success can lead to promotion, while relegation resets the competitive environment you face - your financial strategy needs to support the level you're aiming for and stay sustainable once you get there.

22. The PHM Economy in Practice

Think of the team economy as one continuous cycle, not a list of separate features. Players require contracts and salaries, which create ongoing expenses. Home games open the door to matchday revenue: arena capacity sets how many spectators can attend, kiosk operations sell food and drink to that audience, and sponsors add revenue on top. Staff can lift sponsorship revenue and team performance, while arena investment grows the organization's future revenue potential. Sporting performance decides your position in the league, and league progression creates new competitive challenges - all of which feeds back into your next roster and finance decisions.

The dangerous version of the same cycle

The same system can run in the opposite direction: overspending leads to a negative balance, and a balance that stays negative too long tips the club into bankruptcy.

Overspending → negative balance → prolonged negative balance → bankruptcy.

Being briefly short of cash isn't the same as being bankrupt - a team can run a negative balance for a while, but only for so long. Liquidity matters.

23. Loans

Teams can take loans to finance development, in durations of 30, 90, 180, or 365 days.

A loan funds an important investment but also creates an obligation - before borrowing, check whether the investment actually fits your future cash flow. Debt can strengthen the organization, but carrying too much of it makes the club more vulnerable.

Loan can be repaid early, with 1% fee for early repayment.

24. Asynchronous Management

PHM is built around decisions that don't resolve immediately:

You make a decision, wait for a player or system to respond, see the result, then adjust - that rhythm is fundamental to how the game plays.

25. The Trade Deadline as a Strategic Checkpoint

The trade deadline usually falls around round 19 of the regular season - trades and extension contracts run until then, and both are restricted afterward, splitting the season into two distinct management phases.

Before the deadline

• Strengthen weaknesses.
• Sell players who no longer fit the plan.
• Negotiate extensions.
• Search for trade opportunities.
• Build playoff depth.

After the deadline

Once it passes, you can no longer make these roster changes, so the team you've assembled has to carry you through the rest of the competition - making the deadline a natural point to review the whole organization, not just one position.

26. Long-Term Strategy

Build for more than one season

Players age a year every season, while the organization accumulates advantages over time through players, facilities, staff, finances, experience, and development - a good long-term strategy plans for what your team looks like next season, not just today.

Young players versus immediate strength

A young developing player is a long-term investment; an older player can offer more immediate value. Which one is right depends on your competitive position and financial situation.

Promotion versus survival

If you're competing for promotion, aggressive investment can make sense when it gives you a real shot. If you've just been promoted, survival matters more - trying to play every season like you must win it all just creates unnecessary financial pressure.

Do not optimize one system in isolation

One of the easiest mistakes for a new manager is optimizing a single statistic - for example:

• Buying only the highest-rated players.
• Playing the same players every game.
• Ignoring salary costs.
• Ignoring chemistry.
• Spending all available cash on transfers.
• Ignoring injuries and roster depth.
• Investing in the arena without considering overall cash flow.

Each of these looks sensible on its own, but together they produce a weaker organization.

27. Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

• Buying the highest-rated player automatically. Individual ability matters, but chemistry, traits, energy, contracts, and tactical fit matter just as much.
• Ignoring energy. Constantly using the same players hurts both performance and training.
• Ignoring chemistry. A familiar line can outperform a collection of individually stronger players.
• Waiting too long on contracts. Extension offers take time to resolve, and the trade deadline eventually shuts them down.
• Spending all available cash. A positive balance today doesn't guarantee a healthy club tomorrow - salaries, investments, loans, and unexpected costs all hit future liquidity.
• Ignoring the market. Prices move with supply and demand, and other managers are competing for the same assets.
• Planning only for the next game. PHM is a long-term game - the best move for one match isn't always the best move for the season.

28. A New Manager's First Priorities

A new manager doesn't need to master every system at once. Start with these fundamentals:

1. Know your players. Learn their ability, age, traits, contracts, energy, and roles.
2. Build sensible lines. Consider chemistry and shared history, not just ratings.
3. Manage energy. Avoid unnecessarily overusing important players.
4. Keep players developing. Use training as part of your long-term plan.
5. Watch injuries. Keep enough roster depth to handle absences.
6. Understand your finances. Use the balance ledger and know your ongoing salary commitments.
7. Learn the market. Prices are determined by other managers and supply and demand.
8. Plan around the deadline. Do not leave major roster decisions until the final moment.
9. Understand your league position. Your objective may be promotion, playoff success, or avoiding relegation.
10. Think in seasons. Every decision contributes to the organization you will have in the future.

29. The Bigger Picture

PHM gets more interesting once you stop looking at individual features and start seeing how they connect. A player is not just a rating - he carries age, development path, traits, chemistry, history, energy, contract, salary, and market value. A lineup is not just the highest-rated players - it's a combination of ability, chemistry, traits, energy, history, and tactics. A transfer is not just a purchase - it changes your roster, finances, salary commitments, chemistry, and future options. An arena is not just a building - it's part of your matchday economy and long-term organizational development. And a season is not just a series of games - it's a sequence of decisions spanning energy, injuries, contracts, transfers, development, finances, standings, playoffs, and eventually promotion or relegation.

30. The Core Philosophy of PHM

Every season is another chance to improve the organization - develop a young player, catch a good market opportunity, build a successful line, upgrade the arena, land an important contract, survive a hard season, earn promotion, or recover from a setback. These decisions accumulate.

Pocket Hockey Manager is about building a hockey organization over time.

Winning games matters, but sustainable success comes from good decisions across the whole system: developing players, building effective lines, managing energy, negotiating contracts, using the transfer market intelligently, keeping finances healthy, investing in the arena and staff, planning around the schedule and trade deadline, and adapting to what other managers do. That's the real challenge - not simply finding the strongest players, but building the strongest organization you can over multiple seasons.