How to Watch the Stanley Cup Live Stream (2020)

The 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs officially start on April 8th, and run through mid-to-late June, as the 16 best teams in the NHL fight it out to see whose names will be etched in the bottom band. If you've cut the cord and don't want to miss a moment of the action on the ice, or you just want to be able to catch a game here or there without being glued to your TV, we'll show you all of your best options to watch Stanley Cup live streams.

NBC has the broadcast rights for the Stanley Cup, and games are set to appear on NBC, NBC Sports, CNBC, USA, and possibly even the Golf Channel, so the best way to stream is through your cable provider or a streaming service like Hulu or YouTube TV that has good coverage for NBC's family of networks.

In 2020, NHL playoff games will be broadcast on at least four different channels, including three cable channels and one major network. You can't catch all of the action if you rely on an antenna to watch TV, and even if you do have cable, you'll need to check to make sure that your package includes all of the necessary channels.

For cord cutters, the best way to catch the full Stanley Cup playoffs in 2020 is through a live streaming television service.

If you want to watch every game in the NHL playoffs, or at least have the option to, these are the channels that will air games:

• NBC: Stanley Cup games are set to air on NBC throughout the playoffs, and the finals will be split between NBC and NBC Sports. If you want to catch the most important games, you absolutely need to have NBC.
• NBC Sports: Games air on NBC Sports throughout the playoffs, and a couple games from the Stanley Cup finals also air on this network. That makes this your second highest priority.
• CNBC: A lot of games, especially early round games, air on CNBC, so this is also an important network to target.
• USA: NBC typically chooses to air a decent number of first round Stanley Cup games on USA. If you want access to these games, make sure you have some way to watch or stream USA.
• The Golf Channel, NHL Network: Historically, NBC has chosen to air a handful of Stanley Cup games on these channels. In case NBC opts to air a game on one of them, it may pay off to have access.

Since individual games will appear on four different networks, with the potential to appear on a couple others, the best way to stream the NHL playoffs is to use a streaming service that includes everything.

These television streaming services provide live access to the same channels you would normally watch through cable or satellite, but you stream them over the internet instead. To take advantage of one of these services, you need a subscription to the service, a device that's capable of streaming, and a high speed internet connection.

Devices that are capable of streaming include your computer, through any modern web browser, your smartphone, a set-top box like a Roku, and even game consoles like Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

These services all provide access to different combinations of channels, and some have better coverage for networks like NBC. That means some of them have better coverage for NHL playoff games than others.

Here are your options, including the relevant channels they offer:

For most people, Hulu with Live TV will represent the best option for streaming NHL playoffs games. It includes NBC Sports, CNBC, USA, and also has NBC in more markets than its competitors.

YouTube TV is also a good option, as it offers all of the necessary channels and has NBC in a large number of markets. DirecTV Now is a viable options as well, if it offers NBC where you live.

FuboTV is also a fine option, but they only offer NBC in a limited number of markets. The same is true of Sling TV, but if you choose Sling, you'll need to pay for the News Extra add-on.

If you want to watch the Stanley Cup playoffs on your mobile device, set top box, or game console, here are the apps you'll need:

• Android: Hulu, NBC Sports, CNBC, USA
• iOS: Hulu, NBC Sports, CNBC, USA
• Amazon devices: Hulu, NBC Sports, CNBC, USA
• Roku: Hulu, NBC Sports, CNBC, USA
• PS4: Hulu, NBC Sports,
• Xbox One: Hulu, NBC Sports, CNBC

If you have a cable subscription, or you are able to borrow login information from a friend or family member, you can also stream many Stanley Cup playoff games through NBC Sports.

Here's how to stream through NBC Sports:

If none of the official options work, or you don't have access to them due to your location or any other reason, Ace Stream is the next best option for streaming NHL playoff games. Ace Stream is an app that streams audio and video from other users, so watching sports like the Stanley Cup playoffs through this method is free.

The catch is that Ace Stream doesn't always provide the highest quality audio or video, and finding streams can be difficult. Since it relies on other fans to broadcast their own streams of individual games, this method can be hit or miss.

Before you can stream with this method, you have to download and install Ace Stream. We have a guide to streaming sports online with Ace Stream if you're unfamiliar with the process.

Once you have Ace Stream running on your device, you need to find a content ID for the game you want to watch. Content IDs are like addresses that Ace Stream uses to locate and stream something.

The NHL Streams subreddit is usually a good place to look for free content IDs, and other links to Stanley Cup playoff streams. You can also find similar content on Discord.

If you aren't able to find a content ID through that method, you can usually find them through a search engine. To accomplish this, you would need to open your favorite search engine and enter a query like this: "2020 Stanley Cup playoffs Ace Stream content ID."

As a method of last resort, the final option for live streaming the Stanley Cup playoffs is to use a free sports streaming website. These sites don't have the rights to stream NHL games, or any games at all, so they typically link to free streams.

Here are the names of some free sports streaming sites that usually provide Stanley Cup playoff games:

• Stream2Watch
• FromHot
• Bosscast
• Cricfree

For more information about how free sports streaming websites work, take a look at our full guide to streaming free sports online.

Visit ESPN for the 2020 Stanley Cup playoff matchups.