NHL Center Ice is an out-of-market sports package distributed by most cable and satellite providers in the United States and Canada. The package allows its subscribers to see up to forty out-of-market National Hockey League games a week using local and national television networks.
NHL Center Ice includes Canadian broadcasts, such as games broadcast on Sportsnet, as well as Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts on CBC, Sportsnet, and Citytv. It also has included out-of-region games broadcast on ABC, ESPN, and TNT/TBS. Occasionally, French-language feeds from TVA Sports may be used if no English-language broadcast is available. Pay-per-view games (e.g. Edmonton Oilers) are included as well. For some cable viewers and those subscribing via Dish NetworkorDirecTV, both teams' feeds are available for most games. Other cable subscribers may be limited to only one feed and also have a smaller selection of high-definition games.
Some providers offer high definition broadcasts when available. A number of providers put Center Ice on the same channels as MLB Extra Innings; hockey often gets priority because the conflict occurs during April, at the end of the regular season and beginning of the playoffs.
Games which are nationally televised in the U.S. on ABC, ESPN, TNT, TBS, or NHL Network. (Subscribers get NHL Network for free when they buy Center Ice, unless they subscribe through Spectrum or Verizon Fios, which at this time do not include NHL Network as part of the Center Ice package.)
High-definition feeds of games originating on MSG, MSGSN, MSG Western New York, MSG2, and MSGSN2 on Dish Network
OTA Broadcasts (Only shown when it is the only broadcast available for that game).
RDS and RDS2 (French-speaking Canadiens and Senators broadcast); these broadcasts are shown only when there is not an English broadcast available.
1 Indicates the channel is still in existence, but currently operates as a basic cable channel. 2 Star Channel was part of Warner Communications' QUBE interactive cable service, and was the precursor to present-day The Movie Channel.
