The NHL Stanley Cup Final is the pinnacle of the season, and every year millions of hockey fans tune in to watch the best of the best battle it out on the ice. If you’re a cord-cutter looking to catch the action without cable, Sling TV has you covered.
In a hurry? This year, for the very first time, ABC will be carrying the entire Stanley Cup Final series. You can get ABC in select markets from Sling Blue for $40.00/mo — which is the cheapest you can get it.
Table Of Contents
For 15 years in the US, NBC held the broadcasting rights, but starting in 2021-22, the NHL moved to split their national games between ESPN and Turner Sports. This means that National Hockey League games now appear on the NHL Network, ESPN and its related channels (ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, etc.), TNT, and TBS.
Sling TV is a live TV streaming service that carries all these channels — and many others. The exact channels depend on the plan. For example, Disney Channel comes with Sling Orange and truTV comes with Sling Blue. Note that you will need the Sports Extra add-on to get NHL Network.
All plans comes with 50 hours of cloud DVR storage. The Blue plan allows you to watch on up to 3 devices at once but the Orange plan is limited to a single one.
You also get half off your first month with Sling TV.
How to Watch the 2024 Stanley Cup Final Live on Sling TV
As mentioned, ABC will be airing the entire Final. Unfortunately, it will not be simulcast on ESPN3.
But the good news for you is that ABC is included in select markets of the Sling Blue base plan, so, as far as the Final goes, you can’t go wrong. It also includes TNT plus ~40 more channels for just $40.00/mo.
However, we suspect that most hockey fans will also want to watch the rest of the NHL postseason. NHL playoff games in the earlier rounds will be on TNT, TBS, ESPN, ESPN2 (see our complete schedule as it’s released), and ABC. And ESPN isn’t on Sling Blue.
So if you want to be all set for the entire postseason, you should sign up for Sling Orange & Blue for $55.00/mo. See our guide to Sling TV’s channels and packages for more information on the differences between Orange and Blue.
Sling’s 2024 Stanley Cup Final Predictions and Analysis
Sixteen teams entered the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs, fighting to be the last one standing and lift one of sport’s most prestigious trophies in June. Last year’s Stanley Cup Champion, the Vegas Golden Knights, were defeated in the first round by the Dallas Stars repeat? Will the regular-season powerhouse Boston Bruins do so instead? Or will a team come out of nowhere to claim it?
Seeding and First Round Matchups for the Stanley Cup With Sling
Going into the First Round of the NHL Playoffs, these were the postseason bracket matchups, based on the rankings from the regular season.
As we come to the end of Round 2, FanDuel provides the following odds for the remaining teams:
- Dallas Stars (DAL) +220
- Florida Panthers (FLA) +250
- New York Rangers (NYR) +500
- Edmonton Oilers (EDM) +650
- Carolina Hurricanes (CAR) +900
- Vancouver Canucks (VAN) +1300
- Colorado Avalanche (COL) +3200
- Boston Bruins (BOS) +6000
Watch the NHL Season Division Winners with Sling: Panthers, Rangers, Stars, Canucks
Although the value of the regular season is arguably less important in hockey than it is in other sports, considering how many upsets occur in the NHL postseason every year, this season’s division winners are ones to watch.
None of the 2023-24 division winners were all that different. They ranged in points from 109 (Canucks) to 114 (Rangers). All of them made it through the first round.
Stanley Cup Best of the Rest: Oilers, Hurricanes, Avalanche, Bruins
The next group of teams that many are focusing on are those that finished in second or third place in their respective divisions. The best of these is probably the Hurricanes, who ended the regular season with 111 points. After them were the Bruins (109), Avalanche (107), and Oilers (104)
Teams That Failed in the First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs
Although all the division winners made it through the first round, a number of excellent teams did not.
Most notable is probably the Winnipeg Jets, which ended the regular season with 110 points. They were defeated in just 5 games by Colorado. After them were Toronto Maple Leafs (102), Nashville Predators (99), LA Kings (99), Tampa Bay Lightning (98), Vegas Golden Knights (98), New York Islanders (94), and Washington Capitals (91).
NHL Teams That Missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs
Although the Stanley Cup playoffs are extensive with 16 participants, that number means that another 16 franchises are on the outside looking in with many of their players already hitting the golf courses.
Regardless of what they decide to do with their free time, players on these teams are no longer playing hockey: Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres, Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers, Minnesota Wild, Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, Columbus Blue Jackets, Calgary Flames, St Louis Blues, Arizona Coyotes, San Jose Sharks, Chicago Blackhawks, Seattle Kraken, and Anaheim Ducks.
Who Will Win the Stanley Cup Final? Watch on Sling TV
It cannot be stressed enough how unpredictable the postseason is in this sport. For example, Dallas is the top pick to win it all but they barely made it through the first round.
Another popular selection is Edmonton, but they are struggling against what is supposedly a weaker Vancouver team.
Carolina and the Rangers are even. Florida is leading the Bruins, which surprises no one.
Understand the Stanley Cup Playoffs with Sling: Format and Rules
Here is a breakdown of the Stanley Cup playoffs format for those who are new to this mesmerizing spectacle. Fortunately, its important aspects are simple to understand.
Sixteen teams take part in a fixed bracket with each round consisting of seven-game series played in a 2-2-1-1-1 format, meaning that one of the teams hosts games one, two, five, and seven. Games five, six, and seven are only played if necessary.
If the score of any contest is tied at the end of regulation, the teams will head to overtime and play until someone scores to break the deadlock. This can go deep into the night. In fact, two playoff games have gone to six overtimes, meaning that fans essentially saw nearly three games with one ticket. Both of those occurred in the 1930s and, crazily, both were scoreless ties until the decider was scored.
History of the Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is the oldest trophy in North American professional sports. Donated by Lord Stanley of Preston, then Governor General of Canada, in 1892, it was originally intended to be awarded to Canada’s top amateur hockey club. However, it was later opened up to professional teams, and was first awarded to a pro hockey team in 1907 (the Kenora Thistles).
The coolest thing about the Stanley Cup is that each player on the winning team gets to take it home for a day and do whatever they want with it. As a result, the cup has been used as a cereal bowl, a dog dish, a feed container for a Kentucky Derby winner, a baptismal font, and even taken to the top of Mount Everest.
Wrapping Up
So if you want to watch the Stanley Cup Final (and/or the Playoffs) on the cheap, you can’t do better than Sling TV. You cannot stream ABC, the Turner channels (TNT and TBS), or ESPN/ESPN2 for less. So sign up for Sling Blue (or Orange & Blue) and see for yourself if anyone manages to break Wayne Gretzky’s record on assists.
FAQ
Which NHL teams have never won a Stanley Cup?
Among currently active teams, the Vancouver Canucks have made the final three times and never won, with their most recent appearance being in 2011. The Buffalo Sabres have similarly appeared twice with no wins, most recently in 1999.
Five teams have appeared once and lost:
- Florida Panthers (1996)
- Vegas Golden Knights (2018)
- Nashville Predators (2017)
- Ottawa Senators (2007)
- San Jose Sharks (2016)
And these teams have never made the Final:
- Minnesota Wild
- Winnipeg Jets
- Seattle Kraken
- Arizona Coyotes
- Columbus Blue Jackets
Which team has the most Stanley Cup wins?
The Montreal Canadiens have won the Stanley Cup more times than any other team in NHL history, with a total of 24 championships. The team’s first cup win came in 1916, but their most recent win was 1993, which was also the last time a Canadian team took home the Cup.
What devices can I live stream the Stanley Cup finals on?
Sling TV provides apps for most devices. These include Amazon Fire TV, Android mobile, Apple TV, Chromecast, iOS (iPhone/iPad), and Roku. And it includes smart TVs from LG, Samsung, Vizio, and those using the Android TV standard. It also supports gaming systems Xbox and Oculus.
Featured image: Marc-André Fleury and Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins show off their 2009 Stanley Cup during a victory parade through center-city Pittsburgh / taken by Michael Righi under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Page Updates ▼▲
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Updated for the 2024 Stanley Cup finals with teams and odds.
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Added table of contents. Added links to streaming services. Mentioned channel info. Updated some section headings. Changes to some sections. Added some links.
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