Best Way to Watch NHL Playoff Games

[OverPowerYou]

Im asking this since I’m sure others haven’t had this issue since 2011 but would like to find a way to watch the games 

What is the best way to watch all nhl playoff games? Is there some type of service I could pay 2 months for then cancel? 
 

 

Edited April 15 by OverPowerYou

[Big Guava]

Sportsurge is how I've watched every Sabres game for the last 3-4 years.

[OverPowerYou]

17 minutes ago, Big Guava said:

Sportsurge is how I've watched every Sabres game for the last 3-4 years.

Will it work for playoffs too ? 

[Big Guava]

17 minutes ago, OverPowerYou said:

Will it work for playoffs too ? 

Works for all the games and every sport.

[FrenchConnection44]

From what I’ve read for US National Broadcasts: ESPN networks, TNT (TBS & TruTV), and ABC will cover all playoff games.

If you have a streaming network (YouTubeTV, Fubo, etc) or cable you should be able to watch all of them. However some first round games will be subject to blackout. I am not sure what all that entails. You could simply take out a one month subscription to YTTV or FUBO  - and usually one or both offer a free one week trial, so that could get you through most of them if you didn’t already have access  

 

 

[SabresBaltimore]

My understanding is people in market may get some round 1 games on MSB-B, but that ESPN+ will not carry the RSN feeds like they do in regular season. All games on TNT should also be on HBO MAX. All games on ESPN should also be on ESPN Unlimited. For games not on those TV channels I have no idea and waiting to figure it out. Like will the TNT folks cover a Sabres game and it only streams on MAX? I have ESPN Unlimited through my cable and I have TNT and ESPN as part of that, so hopefully that will be enough to get all the games, but I'll sign up for MAX if I have to.

[OverPowerYou]

I am in Albany. MSG is complicated here because it’s Sabres, Rangers, Islanders, Devils. If I get Fubo or YouTube tv will there still be whacky blackouts? 

[GASabresIUFAN]

Best way to watch the games is for the NHL to release a friggin schedule. 

 

Edited April 16 by GASabresIUFAN

[Night Train]

[Taro T]

1 hour ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Best way to watch the games is for the NHL to release a friggin schedule. 

 

Well, it wouldn't be fair to the Pacific teams if they don't know when they're playing but everybody else does.  Considering not a single team in that division would be better than WC4 (need to pass a team just to be the 1st team missing the playoffs), expect it's fair that they not know where they're going nor when (seems a metaphor for all their seasons too).

[Hawerchuk]

Kenny Albert is good but having to listen to Eddie O and "Bouch" and the girl doing play by play is friggin excruciating! All they do is ramble on and on and completely ignore the actual play on ice. The Dallas game last night was absolute garbage. 

Can we listen to Dan and Rayzor for the playoffs? I seriously cannot take it with the TNT crew!! 

[That Aud Smell]

3 hours ago, OverPowerYou said:

I am in Albany. MSG is complicated here because it’s Sabres, Rangers, Islanders, Devils. If I get Fubo or YouTube tv will there still be whacky blackouts? 

it's frustrating that you need a higher degree to understand where, how to watch the playoffs.

my understanding is that TNT (plus Tru?) and ESPN should, between the two of them, cover just about every playoff game.

if YouTube TV has both of those services, then you should be covered.

it still seems possible that there could be some Round 1 games that don't get picked up by ESPN or TNT.

[Captain Caveman]

8 hours ago, FrenchConnection44 said:

From what I’ve read for US National Broadcasts: ESPN networks, TNT (TBS & TruTV), and ABC will cover all playoff games.

If you have a streaming network (YouTubeTV, Fubo, etc) or cable you should be able to watch all of them. However some first round games will be subject to blackout. I am not sure what all that entails. You could simply take out a one month subscription to YTTV or FUBO  - and usually one or both offer a free one week trial, so that could get you through most of them if you didn’t already have access  

 

I have FUBO and while it's been great for MSG / local games, they no longer carry TBS / TNT, so a lot of playoff games won't be included.  If you have HBO / MAX, you can watch those games via the MAX streaming service.

[msw2112]

1 hour ago, Hawerchuk said:

Kenny Albert is good but having to listen to Eddie O and "Bouch" and the girl doing play by play is friggin excruciating! All they do is ramble on and on and completely ignore the actual play on ice. The Dallas game last night was absolute garbage. 

Can we listen to Dan and Rayzor for the playoffs? I seriously cannot take it with the TNT crew!! 

The TNT guys are typically pretty good, but they were absolutely horrible last night.  The amount of side conversations going on during play was ridiculous.  I thought it would end after the Tage Thompson appearance, but it didn't, as they droned on, ignoring the action on the ice, for the rest of the game.  Outside of the low drama of home ice in the Final if both the Sabres and Dallas made it there, which they didn't even mention until OT, by which time Dallas' "extra" point for getting to OT made it already moot, they didn't even bring it up.  To put it another way, the game wasn't very meaningful and I don't think the broadcast team brought their A-game.  I do expect better from them in the playoffs.  These guys usually put on a professional broadcast for NHL games and they did the same for the Olympics.

As to where/how to watch the playoff games, my understanding is that the ESPN (ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, +, U, etc.) and Turner (TNT, TBS, Tru) networks will cover all of the playoff games on US cable/broadcast networks.  Most middle-to-upper tier cable or streaming service packages carry all of these channels.  I have YouTubeTV and they carry all of these channels, so I will have no problem getting every game, including all 16 Sabres wins.  In my area, Cox is the main cable provider and unless you have the ultra-basic package, you would also get all of those channels.  I suspect that other major cable/streaming systems (Spectrum, Comcast/X-Finity, Fubo, etc.) would be the same.

[Taro T]

Not really the right place for this, but it's close.  

Just out of curiosity, set the DVR to record the 9:30PM (10PM?) game on ESPN knowing that in market the coverage would be blacked out from 7:30 until that next game was scheduled to start.  As hoped, the ESPN feed after the next game was set to start was recorded.  So am watching the ESPN coverage of last night's 3rd period.

So, if you're in WNY and want to watch the ESPN or TNT coverage, you're likely SOL, BUT if they have a game set to overlap with another game you might be able to catch their coverage of some of it.