NHL 15 owners will be able to participate in a beta for NHL 16's EA Sports Hockey League mode later this month, EA announced today.

　　The popular mode, which was conspicuously missing from NHL 15, makes a return in NHL 16. Before that happens, anyone who owns NHL 15 on Xbox One or PS4 will be eligible to download an EASHL beta that's set to run from July 30 through August 6.

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　　To download the beta, simply boot up NHL 15 starting on July 30 and you should see a listing for it in the game's main menu. Once you've started the download, you won't need to be inside of NHL 15 to play it. That potentially means NHL 15 owners can share their game disc with friends who can also snag the beta.

　　With NHL 16 being exclusive to Xbox One and PS4, the beta won't be available on Xbox 360 or PS3. However, if you owned NHL 15 on either of those platforms and have since moved on to a current-gen system, you may still be able to get in. EA says that it will send beta codes to a select number of these players, though you'll need to be opted in for EA's NHL emails to have a chance of receiving one.

　　EASHL allows players to form teams with each other and then compete in 6-on-6 online matches. It was among the features that were either missing from NHL 15 or were added in post-launch updates. EA claims this year's version has been "reimagined to deliver a new player class system for a more competitive and balanced experience."

　　NHL 16 is due out for Xbox One and PS4 on September 15 in North America and September 17 in Europe. Last-gen systems, meanwhile, will get what sounds like a version of NHL 15 with updated rosters called NHL: Legacy Edition.