The grit of competitive ice hockey can be an alluring spectacle. The National Hockey League (NHL) might be based in the faraway lands of Canada and the USA, but is the pinnacle of the sport.
Find out how to watch every match of the season live and on-demand on your devices or how to watch replays from your trusted streaming providers on this NHL guide!
How to watch NHL games live in Australia
The 2023-24 NHL season is the 107th time the National Hockey League will crown a champion. This year the regular season starts on October 10th, 2023 and the last game of the regular season to be played on April 18th.
The playoffs are scheduled shortly after, and will consist of the top sixteen teams battling in the first round, with the winners advancing to the second round, and then onto the Conference Championship. The season concludes with the Stanley Cup championship sometime in June, 2024.
NHL regular season games, playoffs and the Stanley Cup finals will be televised live in Australia exclusively by Foxtel, Foxtel Now, Foxtel from Telstra and Kayo Sports, courtesy of simulcasts from the ESPN channels.
The coverage in 2024 will include an average of three Regular Season games live per week, extended live coverage of the first two rounds of the Playoffs and Conference finals, and conclude with every game of the 2023/24 NHL Season being shown live.
| Provider | NHL Hockey | Streaming |
|---|---|---|
| Kayo Sports |
Up to 3 live regular season games weekly, expanded playoff coverage, and every game of the Stanley Cup finals LIVE |
Yes – 7-day FREE trial |
| Foxtel Now |
Up to 3 live regular season games weekly, expanded playoff coverage, and every game of the Stanley Cup finals LIVE |
Yes – 10-day FREE trial |
| Free to Air | None | N/A |
Stream the NHL live with Kayo Sports
With Kayo you will have access to the same sports broadcasts as Foxtel, and can stream NHL to eligible devices and browsers. For fans who want to catch up on the late-night or early-morning action, Kayo Minis provide a condensed match recap after the play has concluded.
Other Kayo features include Interactive Graphics, SplitView, No Spoilers, and Key Moments, which provide highlights throughout the matches in real-time.
Best of all, Kayo has a 7-day free trial offer. If you want to check out Kayo after your trial is over simply choose between the One or Basic plans.
The Kayo One plan costs $25 per month and Kayo Basic is $35 per month. A great thing to notice is that there’s no lock in contract tying you down, so you can cancel your subscription at any time, leaving you free to enjoy Kayo’s huge range of live sports and on demand coverage with no worries.
FeaturedWatch the NHL live online with Foxtel Now
One option to watch all the available NHL fixtures is with Foxtel or Foxtel Now. The Foxtel Now streaming service offers access to all the sport on Foxtel via their Sports Pack.
That means that you get access to all the live and on-demand sports Foxtel has to offer, including NHL games and the other leagues, matches and events taking place for that month.
To start new users can check it out with their 10-day free trial offer. After your trial has ended, you can choose the Sports Pack and the Essentials Pack, as the two products come as a team. Foxtel Now is available on a variety of devices, including PC/Mac, Android and IOS mobile phones and tablets, PlayStation 4, Google Chromecast, and select Smart TVs.
In addition to being internet-connected, Foxtel Now also includes the option to stream live sports using the Foxtel Go app when you’re away from home.
Watch the NHL live with Telstra or Foxtel iQ
You can also watch NHL games live via the Foxtel iQ satellite or cable service, where you will need to subscribe to the Sports HD pack for twelve months. The Sports HD pack offers nine dedicated sport channels, namely Fox Cricket, Fox League, Fox Footy, Fox Sports 503, 505, 506, 507, as well as ESPN and ESPN2.
Foxtel, and likewise Foxtel from Telstra, has made available the latest set-top box version, iQ5, which delivers their programming in vivid detail with 4K Ultra HD. Even though Foxtel and Foxtel from Telstra is more expensive than Foxtel Now, Foxtel iQ5 is the only way to watch ice hockey live in 4K Ultra HD, providing you have a 4K ready TV.
Foxtel iQ customers also have the option to stream NHL games on a variety of mobile devices via Foxtel Go. However, the streaming will be in standard definition as 4K is only available via the Foxtel iQ5 set-top box.
Streaming Devices for watching the NHL in Australia
Here is a comprehensive list of sports streaming devices for watching the NHL on your home TV or mobile. This way you’ll be able to watch your favourite team on any device wherever you might be when the game starts.
Devices supported on Optus Sport
Streaming Devices
- Apple TV (4th generation and above)
- Fetch TV (Mini, 2nd Gen, Mighty)
- Android TV (Android 7 and above)
- Fire TV (1st & 2nd generation)
- Hubbl
Smart TV
- LG Smart TV (2017 models or newer)
- Samsung Smart TVs (2017 models or newer)
Mobile devices
- iPhone (iOS 10.0 and above)
- iPad (iOS 10.0 and above)
- Android (versions 5.0 and above)
Casting
- AirPlay (Apple TV Gen 1-3)
- Chromecast (2nd generation and above)
Gaming consoles
- Xbox One
- Xbox One S
- Xbox One X
Devices supported on Foxtel Now
- Foxtel Now Box: Yes
- Sony Android TV: Yes – OS Android 8 – Android 12
- iOS Mobiles/Tablets: Yes – Via Foxtel Go app (iOS 9.35 or above)
- Android Mobiles/Tablets: Yes – Via
native app (Lollipop 5.0 or above) - PC/Mac: Yes – Windows devices running Windows 7 and above. Mac devices running OS X Yosemite 10.10 and above
- Google Chromecast: Yes – Via casting
- Google Nest: Yes – on Foxtel Go via a compatible Chromecast device connected or built-in to your TV
- Apple TV: Yes – Via AirPlay
- Gaming consoles: Yes – PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro (Foxtel Play on PlayStation 3)
- Samsung Smart TVs: Yes – Select 2017 models and above, running on Tizen 3.0 or above. (Foxtel Play on 2015 and 2016 models)
- LG Smart TVs: Yes – Select 2017-2022 models, running webOS 3.5 or above
- Hisense Smart TVs: Yes – Select 2019 – 2020 models
- Shield TV: Yes – on Shield TV and Shield TV Pro
