This first public release in the series was created by a small independent team led by Finnish programmer Risto Remes.

In May 2005, Sports Interactive and Sega released the first sequel for the commercial version, called NHL Eastside Hockey Manager 2005.

In late September 2005, a North American version of the game was released with updated rules for the 2005–06 hockey season.

The artwork for NHL Eastside Hockey Manager 2005 included a photograph of Michael Brabon who at the time, was playing for Cardiff Devils.

It includes many new features, such as an increase in the number of playable leagues and international competitions, an improved 2D match engine, support for custom and historic databases, and full Steam Workshop functionality.