After coming up seven goals short in their bid for a first-ever Stanley Cup, the Florida Panthers return home for Game 5 against the Edmonton Oilers tonight. The Panthers are still certainly in control of the series, but a loss here would make things significantly more uneasy, as the series would then head back to Edmonton for a Game 6.
Game 5 of the Stanley Cup is about to begin, at 8:00 p.m. ET. If you live in the United States and want to watch, it will be televised on ABC, but if you don’t have cable and would rather watch a live stream, there are also a bevy of different ways you can stream the NHL playoffs.
If you live in the United States, there are three different ways you can watch a live stream of this game–and any other potential games in this series–for free: Fubo (“Pro” channel package), YouTube TV (“Base Plan”) or DirecTV Stream (“Entertainment” channel package or above).
All three of these live-TV streaming services include ABC in most markets, so you’ll need to first make sure it’s available in your area. If it is, all you need to do is sign up and then you’ll be able to watch the game live on your phone, computer or other connected-to-TV streaming device such as Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, etc.
With Fubo, you’ll be able to watch for seven days before you have to either cancel or pay. That means you’ll be able to watch every game of the series before your trial ends, as a potential Game 7 would be on June 24. With YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream, the free trials last for five days.
While the aforementioned options are the only ways to watch a live stream of the game for free, the most simple way to watch is with a subscription to ESPN+, which includes every game of the Stanley Cup finals.
You don’t need to worry about markets, as the game is available live to anyone in the United States, and it’s by far the cheapest option if you don’t have any free trials available to you. ESPN+ costs just $11 per month by itself or $15 per month for a bundle with Disney+ and Hulu.
If you’re outside the United States and don’t want to mess with international live-stream options, you can combine one of the aforementioned streaming services with a virtual private network (VPN). The latter is necessary because it will hide your IP address/location, allowing you to bypass location-restrictions and stream content as if you were actually in the US.
NordVPN is our recommendation here. It’s safe, fast, easy to use and comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. You can also peruse our lists of the best VPN services or the best VPN deals if you want some alternatives.
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