It's the most wonderful — and stressful — time of year for hockey fans: the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The first round of the 2025 NHL playoffs kicked off in mid-April after a record-breaking year (literally). After a historic 20th season in the NHL, Alex Ovechkin is now the greatest goal scorer of all time, breaking Wayne Gretzky's record that many thought was unbreakable. Not to mention, the Washington Capitals as a whole have had a tremendous season — falling only to the Winnipeg Jets in the standings.
Of course, as hockey fans know, anything can happen in the NHL playoffs. If you want to witness the excitement (and frustration) of playoff hockey live, here's everything you need to know.
The first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs kicked off on April 19 with a matchup between the St. Louis Blues and No. 1 seed Winnipeg Jets. Teams generally play every other day, with games scheduled through May 4 if necessary. The dates for the second round, third round (conference finals), and Stanley Cup final will depend on how the first series pans out. The final will take place no later June 23. You can check out the full schedule on the official NHL website.
If you have cable or access to a cable login, live games will air on the ESPN/ESPN2/ABC and TNT/truTV/TBS family of networks throughout the postseason. Each series is not strictly designated to one broadcaster — for example, games in a series could air on TNT, ABC, and ESPN within the same week.
Check out the official playoffs schedule on NHL.com to find out which channel to tune into for specific games.
Here's where things get complicated. If you don't have cable access or a cable login, you'll need at least one streaming service to catch all the playoff games live. To watch games that air on the TNT family of networks, you can either tune in through the Max app or via a live TV streaming provider like Sling TV, YouTube TV, or Hulu + Live TV. You'll be able to catch a fraction of the games that air live on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2 through ESPN+, but definitely not all of them. Instead, you'll need a paid TV provider (either cable or live TV streaming via YouTube TV, Sling TV, etc.).
For die-hard hockey fans who can't fathom missing a live game, your best bet is to subscribe to a live TV streaming service. You'll get the most bang for your buck, despite the cost being a bit higher.
Different from cable, live TV streamers rely on the internet and offer you a live channel lineup without a monthly contract. You can cancel any time it no longer suits you — no strings attached. These services aren't cheap, but many offer introductory rates and are still generally more affordable than a monthly cable bill. Plus, you get your money's worth with access to live and local channels spanning news, sports, and entertainment. It'll serve you long after a team is awarded the coveted Stanley Cup, should you choose to keep your subscription.
Here's a breakdown of the best services and streaming deals to watch the Stanley Cup playoffs live.
Opens in a new window Credit: Max Max Standard yearly plan $139.99 for your first year (save $30), then $169.99/year Through May 7, you can save $30 on a yearly Max Standard plan, dropping the cost down to just $139.99 per year or $11.67 per month. That's about 32% in savings compared to paying for the monthly plan. A Max Standard subscription includes the B/R Sports add-on, which includes access to the NHL on TNT games (and simulcast TBS and truTV games). Of course, this only covers about half of the postseason, so you'll still need another way to tune into ESPN and ABC broadcasts. Also note that after your initial discounted year is up, the price will revert to the typical annual plan fee, which is $169.99.
Opens in a new window Credit: Sling Sling TV Orange plan $23 for your first month (save $23), then $46/month Sling TV's Orange plan is your best bet to watch the most postseason NHL games for the lowest price. The Orange plan includes access to ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, TNT, and TBS, plus 30 other channels. While that doesn't include ABC, most ABC NHL games are also available through ESPN3, so you'll be all set. Sling subscriptions are a la carte, so you can add to and take away from your plan with no worries and cancel or pause your subscription at any time. The Orange plan costs $46 per month, but new users can slash 50% off their first month, knocking it down to just $26.
Opens in a new window Credit: YouTube TV YouTube TV free 5-day trial, then $59.99/month for your first two months (save $46) We're big fans of YouTube TV's massive 100+ channel lineup, which includes all of the networks you'll need to tune into the Stanley Cup playoffs live. On the other hand, we're not the biggest fans of the $82.99 per month cost. Fortunately, through July 31, new users can sign up with a killer introductory offer. Kick off your subscription with a five-day trial, then pay just $59.99 per month for your first two months — long enough to last through the Stanley Cup final. After your introductory period, the price will revert to $82.99, so be sure to cancel ahead of that.
Fubo TV (no TNT or TBS) — 7-day free trial, then $54.99 for first month $84.99 per month(save $30)
Hulu + Live TV (all networks) — 3-day trial, then $82.99 per month
ESPN+ (select games) — $11.99/month or as part of $16.99/month Disney+ bundle
Penny pinchers can watch at least part of the postseason for free by utilizing free trials. You'll have to be extremely strategic to get the most out of it, but we'll leave all the details up to you. Here are your options.
YouTube TV currently offers a free 20-minute preview, then a free five-day trial. To unlock the trial, you'll have to enter your credit card information. After your five days are up (you can keep an eye on how much time you have left), you can either cancel or pay $59.99 per month for your first two months — that's $46 in savings.
You can also unlock a free seven-day trial through Fubo TV, then cancel before you get charged $54.99 for the first month. The only downside is that fuboTV doesn't give you access to TNT networks.
Hulu + Live TV gives you another three days for free when you sign up. Just be sure to cancel before the three days are up to avoid that steep $82.99 per month fee.
That's a grand total of 15 days of free live NHL games. If you plan accordingly, you can watch a pretty big chunk of the Stanley Cup playoffs for free.
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