Yahoo, NHL Partner to Live-Stream Hockey Games for Free

No cable subscription of authentication will be required for out-of-market contests

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If you feel a chill this Friday, it’s probably because Yahoo just started live-streaming ice hockey.

The media company and the National Hockey League entered a partnership today to deliver live, out-of-market NHL games for free on Yahoo. Best yet for cord-cutting puck fans, there will be no cable subscription or authentication required.

“This alliance brings us one step closer to providing fans a live professional sporting event every day, on Yahoo, completely frictionless and for free — no cable subscription or authentication required,” said Phil Lynch, vice president, Media Partnerships at Yahoo. “We remain committed to delivering the best digital content to our users and advertisers, and the NHL’s premium content nicely complements our offering of live and on-demand partner content, including Yahoo/MLB’s Game of the Day, Yahoo/NBC Sports content and our recently announced deal with the PGA Tour.”

There are some unfortunate limitations, however. The Yahoo Sports “Game of the Day” will only encompass up to four games per week. For all other contests, Yahoo will deliver in-game highlights. It’ll also provide condensed games, “Best of the Day” and “Best of the Week” top plays and postgame highlights.

The final asterisk hurts those north of the border most: Yahoo’s service is limited to fans in the United States.

This deal comes in addition to the Wednesday and Sunday national NHL games currently promoted by Yahoo to its fans in partnership with NBC Sports Group.

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