Another season means another update to our always-fresh guide to watching NHL games online. Thanks to the proliferation of skinny bundles and the NHL's own ever-improving streaming option, it's easier than ever to watch the NHL without cable. Our guide includes everything you need to know about watching the NHL online in the 2017-18 season, plus tips for catching it over the air or in other broadcast formats.How to Watch NHL Games Online, Over the Air, and More There are a few basic ways to watch NHL games without cable. You could opt for the NHL's own streaming service, NHL.TV. You could use free over-the-air TV, since some games are on NBC, which is an over-the-air channel. Or you could use a skinny bundle.What's a skinny bundle? Well, it's a cable-like package of live TV channels. Only a skinny bundle is a streaming service, not a traditional cable or satellite service. There's lots of competition, low prices, and support for just about any streaming device that you could dream of.Sound good? Well, then you'll love the first few items on our list. Once we've gotten through the skinny bundles, we'll dwell on NHL.TV and over-the-air TV, too. Here's how to watch NHL games online and over the air, no cable required.Hulu with Live TVIt seems like everyone is in on the skinny bundle market these days – including Hulu, best-known for its streaming video on demand service. Hulu with Live TV has a clunkier name than most of its rivals, but it offers very similar perks. The NBC family of networks is here, including live local broadcasts on NBC's flagship channel in select markets. ESPN is here, but NHL Network is not. Click here to read our review of Hulu with Live TV, or click the link below to sign up for the service's free trial offer.Try Hulu with Live TV for freeSling TVSling TV makes NBC Sports available through a base package (“Sling Blue,” $25 per month), so you can get Wednesday Night Rivalry games and some playoff games for far less than you'd pay your cable company. Sling TV also includes some regional FOX Sports Networks, which could give you access to your home team's local broadcasts, depending on where you live. Some regions will also get local broadcasts from NBC's flagship stations. You can test out Sling TV with their free trial – time it right to get some great games without paying! You can read our full review of Sling TV here.Try Sling TV for freefuboTVfuboTV started as a soccer-specific skinny bundle, and it still claims to be the clear choice for sports fans. That's a little questionable given the glaring absence of ESPN, but fans of the NHL – which ESPN notoriously ignores – will find that the service's hockey coverage is decent. NBC's networks are here (local broadcasts are available only in some regions, as is the norm for skinny bundles), though the NHL Network is, unfortunately, missing. Read our review of fuboTV here. You can test out “fubo” ($44.99 per month) or “fubo Extra” ($49.99 per month) for free by clicking the link below and signing up for fuboTV's free trial offer. Both base bundles also offer a discount on your first paid month of service.Try fuboTV for freePlayStation VuePlayStation Vue is another OTT skinny bundle. Like many of its peers, it includes NBC Sports and offers local NBC broadcasts in select markets, making it a worthy option for NHL fans who want to catch the national broadcasts and playoff games that NBC spreads across its networks. PlayStation Vue has a free trial, so be sure to check that out if you want to catch a key regular-season matchup or enjoy some free playoff coverage. You can read our review of PlayStation Vue here, and you can see how it measures up to rival Sling TV here. The stuff you need to watch NHL games online is in PlayStation Vue's cheapest bundle, the $44.99-per-month “Access.”Try PlayStation Vue for freeYouTube TVYouTube TV is Google's skinny bundle service, and it makes a great way to watch NHL games online without cable. YouTube TV costs $40 per month and offers a wealth of great live channels, including NBC and NBCSN live streams. No NHL Network, unfortunately, but YouTube TV does have some regional sports networks. Check out its free trial offer by clicking on the link below.Try YouTube TV for freeDirecTV NowAs is the case with so many other sports, hockey's national broadcasts are easiest to get through skinny bundles. Skinny bundles, of course, are those streaming cable-like packages of live network TV channels. DirecTV Now, like several other skinny bundles that we'll get to soon, gives you a way to access the NBC family of networks without paying high cable bills. NBC's flagship channel is available in select regions, and NBC Sports is available to all subscribers. Regional sports networks are available in some areas as well, so if you're lucky enough to be in that number, you may be able to catch every game your local team plays. You can check out our full review of DirecTV Now here, and sign up for a DirecTV Now free trial here.Try DirecTV Now for freeNHL.TVNHL.TV is the NHL's league-wide streaming service. It works in much the same way as MLB.TV or NBA League Pass: you'll get live home and away broadcasts for all out-of-market regular season games. If you want to root for your local team or watch a national broadcast (like the ones on NBC Sports), you're out of luck, but NHL.TV is a great solution for fans living outside of their favorite team's local market. NHL.TV was previously known as NHL GameCenter LIVE (catchy name!), so this is the same product, just rebranded. NHL.TV has a single-team subscription option these days, too. You can read our review of NHL.TV here (we reviewed it back when it was still going by the old name).Free Over-the-Air TVNBC has the rights to the NHL's national broadcasts. For the most part, they keep those broadcasts on NBC Sports, but the games that do find their way over the NBC's flagship station are a big deal. NBC airs playoff games and Stanley Cup Finals games, among others, so it's worth investing in an antenna if you're an NHL fan. It's very likely that a good antenna will get you NBC broadcasts for free over the air, though availability will depend on where you live. If an antenna doesn't work for you, check to see whether or not your region is one of the markets that allows live feeds to air on skinny bundles like the ones listed below.Can I Watch NHL Games Without Cable on Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, and Chromecast? You sure can! The services we listed above work great on many of the biggest streaming platform out there.Roku fans can choose between Hulu With Live TV, Sling TV, fuboTV, PlayStation Vue, YouTube TV, and DirecTV Now.Hulu With Live TV, Sling TV, fuboTV, PlayStation Vue, and DirecTV Now each have apps for Fire TV devices.Apple TV users can check out Hulu With Live TV, Sling TV, fuboTV, PlayStation Vue, YouTube TV, and DirecTV Now.Chromecast supports Hulu With Live TV, Sling TV, fuboTV, PlayStation Vue, YouTube TV, and DirecTV Now.As for Android TV, the Google-owned streaming platform used on the Nvidia Shield, among other devices, that one supports Hulu With Live TV, Sling TV, fuboTV, PlayStation Vue, and YouTube TV.Want to watch on the go? No problem. Hulu With Live TV, Sling TV, fuboTV, PlayStation Vue, YouTube TV, and DirecTV Now each also have apps for iOS and Android mobile devices.A computer will make an excellent streaming device, too, of course. You can watch NHL games on your computer using the desktop and/or in-browser apps available through Hulu With Live TV, Sling TV, fuboTV, PlayStation Vue, YouTube TV, and DirecTV Now.Even video game consoles will work. Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV, and YouTube TV work on Xbox One. PlayStation Vue works on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.What about NHL.TV? Well, it works on these devices: Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS, Android, PlayStation, and Xbox (plus some smart TVs).Over-the-air TV can also be streamed to many popular streaming devices using OTA DVRs and OTA features on popular apps like Plex.In short, there are a ton of ways to watch live NHL streams and free NHL games without cable. So why not cut the cord today?
