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Ice, ice, baby. Hockey season is upon us once more! If you’re wondering how to watch the NHL, we’ve got you covered. Sound good? Read on.
The National Hockey League was founded in 1917 at the Windsor Hotel in Montréal. At the time of its establishment, the four teams in the league were all Canadian—hence the word “national”—but the NHL expanded to the United States in 1924 when the Boston Bruins joined. Between 1942 and 1967, the league comprised six teams known as the Original Six. Those teams were the Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montréal Canadiens, New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs. The NHL doubled in size in 1967 to 12 teams, increased again to 18 teams by 1974 and there were 21 teams by 1979. In the years between 1991 and 2000, the NHL further expanded to 30 teams. The latest team to join the league was the Seattle Kraken in 2021, rounding out the NHL to 32 teams. But enough about hockey history. Here’s how to watch and stream hockey this season.
When is the NHL 2022 season?
The NHL season 2022-23 starts on October 11 with a doubleheader. The New York Rangers will host the Tampa Bay Lightning at 7:30 p.m. ET or 4:30 p.m. PT. while the Vegas Golden Knights will face off against the Los Angeles Kings at 10 p.m. ET or 7 pm PT. The defending Stanley Cup champions, the Colorado Avalanche take on the Chicago Blackhawks on October 12 at 9:30 p.m. ET or 6:30 p.m. PT.
When are the NHL 2022 playoffs?
The 2022-23 regular season will end on April 13 2023 and will feature 15 games with 30 of the NHL’s 32 teams in action. The 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs will begin shortly after, but an official date has not been released yet.
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How to watch NHL 2022 games 2022 live online
How can fans watch NHL games online? NHL games air on several networks including, ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, TNT and NHL Network, which are available to stream on services like Sling TV, Fubo TV and Hulu+ With Live TV. Sling TV starts at $17.50 for the first month; Fubo TV offers a seven-day free trial and starts at $69.99 per month; Hulu+ With Live TV starts at $69.99 per month and includes free subscriptions to Disney Plus and ESPN Plus. NHL content is also available to stream ESPN Plus, which costs $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year.
NHL game networks offered: ESPN, ESPN 2, TNT, NHL Network.
Sling TV offers three plans: Sling Orange, which is suited for college sports and families; Sling Blue, which is suited for professional sports and news; and Sling Orange & Blue, which includes both plans. ESPN and ESPN 2 are available on Sling Orange and Sling Orange & Blue, while TNT is available on Sling Orange, Sling Blue and Sling Orange Blue.
Sling Orange and Sling Blue each cost $35 per month, while Sling Orange & Blue costs $50 per month and includes a combination package of both plans. However, Sling has a current deal where new subscribers can sign up for any plan for 50 percent off their first month, which cuts the price of Sling Orange and Sling Blue to $17.50 and Sling Orange & Blue to $25 for a new subscriber’s first month. The deal makes Sling the cheapest live TV streaming service on the market right now. Sling also offers NHL Network in its Sports Extra package, which costs an additional $11 per month or $5.50 for a subscriber’s first month. The package comes with 14 extra sports channels including ESPN Sec Network, ACCN ESPN, Pac-12 Network, Longhorn Network, BeIN Sports, ACCN X ESPN, MLB Network, Sec ESPN Network+, ESPN U, Tennis Channel, NHL Network and MLB Strike Zone.
Sling Orange & Blue offers 47 channels, 50 hours of DVR storage and the ability to stream on up to three devices. Sling Blue offers 41 channels, 50 hours of DVR storage and the ability to stream on up to three devices. Sling Orange offers 31 channels, 50 hours of DVR storage and the ability to stream on one device. All Sling TV plans also include more than 10,000 hours of on-demand shows, movies and other content.
NHL game networks offered: ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, TNT
Hulu+ With Live TV costs $69.99 per month and also comes with free subscriptions to Disney Plus (a value of $7.99 per month) and ESPN Plus (a value of $6.99 per month). Hulu+ With Live TV also comes with more than 75 channels, including ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, TNT to watch NHL games. Hulu+ With Live TV also includes access to Hulu’s streaming library of thousands of TV shows and movies, including Hulu originals like The Handmaid’s Tale, Only Murders in the Building, The Kardashians, The Dropout, Little Fires Everywhere, Normal People and The Great. Other Hulu+ With Live TV features include the ability to stream on two screens at the same time, and an unlimited DVR service that saves live TV recordings for up to nine months and allows users to fast-forward to their favorite parts.
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How to watch NHL 2022 games live online for free
How cans fans watch NHL games live online for free? Read on for our tips and tricks to stream National Hockey League matches at no cost.
NHL game networks offered: ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, TNT, NHL Network
Fubo TV offers seven-day free trials for its Starter, Pro and Elite plans. Fubo’s Starter plan comes with 116 channels—including ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, TNT and NHL Network to watch NHL games—as well as a DVR with 250 hours of space, and the ability to stream on up to three screens at the same time. The Pro plan includes 116 channels, a DVR with 1,000 hours of space, and the ability to stream on up to 10 screens at the same time. The Elite plan includes 210 channels, a DVR with 1,000 hours of space, and the ability to stream on 10 screens at the same time.
Fubo starts at $64.99 per month for its Starter plan. The next level up is the Pro plan, which costs $69.99 per month. The final level is the Elite plan, which includes $79.99 per month. Fubo also offers a fourth plan, Latino Quarterly, which does not offer a free trial, costs $33 per month and includes 34 Spanish-language channels, a DVR of 250 hours, and the ability to stream on up to three screens at the same time.
While ESPN Plus doesn’t offer a free trial, ESPN Plus is free with Hulu+ With Live TV, which costs $69.99 per month and also comes with a free subscription to Disney Plus. The deal saves users around $18 per month from subscribing to ESPN Plus and Disney Plus individually. ESPN Plus is also included in The Disney Bundle, which costs $13.99 per month and comes with subscriptions to ESPN Plus, Hulu and Disney Plus. The bundle saves users about $11 from subscribing to each service individually.
On its own, ESPN plus costs $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year, which saves users around $20 or 20 percent from the service’s monthly plan. Along with NHL content, ESPN Plus also includes access to live sports like tennis, MLB and NBA games. Subscribers can also watch college football, international soccer, PGA games and UFC matches.
Along with live events, ESPN Plus also includes original shows, such as Peyton’s Places, Detail, Stephen A’s World, Why Not Us and 30 For 30. ESPN Plus also includes select movies and game replays and is available to stream in HD on ESPN.com and through the ESPN App. Along with streamable content, ESPN Plus also includes fantasy sports tools and premium articles from sports industry experts.
If you’re a Verizon customer (or know someone who is), Verizon offers free subscriptions to The Disney Bundle, which comes with ESPN Plus, Hulu and Disney Plus and saves subscribers $13.99 per month from subscribing to the bundle on its own. Verizon customers eligible for the deal are those with Get More Unlimited or Play More Unlimited Plans. Click here for Verizon’s FAQ on how to sign up for the free Disney Bundle subscription. Verizon customers with Unlimited Plans (including Get More Unlimited, Play More Unlimited, Verizon Plan Unlimited, Go Unlimited, Beyond Unlimited and Above Unlimited) can also receive a free six-month subscription to Disney Plus. Though it doesn’t include Hulu or ESPN Plus, the deal still saves subscribers around $42. Click here for Verizon’s FAQ on how to sign up for its free Disney Plus subscription.
Who are the NHL 2022 teams?
The National Hockey League is the professional ice hockey league in North America. The NHL is made up of 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada—broken up into four divisions.
Metropolitan Division: Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals.
Atlantic Division: Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Montréal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Tampa Bay Lighting, Toronto Maple Leafs.
Western Conference: Arizona Coyotes, Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, Winnipeg Jets.
Pacific Division: Anaheim Ducks, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks, Seattle Kraken, Vancouver Canucks, Vegas Golden Knights.
NHL content is available to stream on ESPN Plus. Here’s how to subscribe for free.
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