NHL Center Ice vs ESPN NHL Power Play: Which Out-of-Market Hockey Package Should You Get?

If you have cable or satellite TV and want the most out-of-market NHL games each week, NHL Center Ice is the simpler buy at about $80 for the regular season. If you stream, NHL Power Play on ESPN is an option: it is included with ESPN Select at $13.99 a month (October 2026), streams about 1,000 out-of-market games and adds games you can only watch on ESPN's app. Local and national game blackouts vary by rights, so check each package before subscribing.

NHL Center Ice vs NHL Power Play at a glance (October 2026)

	NHL Center Ice	NHL Power Play (ESPN)
How you get it	Add-on from your cable or satellite provider	Included with ESPN Select or ESPN Unlimited
Price	$79.98 on DIRECTV; other providers vary	ESPN Select $13.99/mo or $139.99/yr
Where you watch	Extra channels on your TV box	ESPN app on phones, smart TVs and streaming players
Local team	Not included	Not included
National games	Blacked out	Blacked out unless they are on ESPN
Best for	Cable and satellite homes	Cord cutters and fans who watch on the go

What NHL Center Ice includes and costs

Center Ice adds out-of-market regular-season games as extra channels on your TV service. DIRECTV lists $79.98 for the 2026-27 regular season, split into three payments. Check your cable or satellite provider for its current rate and any later-season offer. It is a TV-box product, so you cannot buy it on its own as a streaming app.

What NHL Power Play includes and costs

NHL Power Play lives inside the ESPN app. ESPN Select costs $13.99 a month or $139.99 a year as of October 2026, which works out cheaper than paying monthly for a full season. ESPN Unlimited, at $31.99 a month, includes Power Play plus the ESPN TV networks. Power Play also carries games that are exclusive to ESPN's streaming service, which Center Ice does not get. If your TV plan already includes ESPN Unlimited, as some Spectrum TV plans do, you may already have Power Play at no extra cost; sign in to the ESPN app with your provider to check.

Understand local and national blackouts

Both packages are built for fans who live outside their team's home TV area. Your local team's games stay on its regional sports network or local station, and games picked for national TV on ESPN, TNT or ABC are blacked out on Center Ice. Before you buy either one, check your team's local TV home so you know which games you would miss.

Which one should you get?

• Pick Center Ice if you keep cable or satellite, watch mostly on the big TV and want the simplest setup.
• Pick NHL Power Play if you have cut the cord, want to watch on a phone or tablet, or also want ESPN's other sports.
• Pay for the year if you plan to watch the whole season, since the annual ESPN Select price beats twelve monthly payments.
• If you only care about the second half of the season, ask your TV provider whether a later-season Center Ice discount is available.

Internet for streaming hockey

Fast hockey looks best on a steady connection. A single HD stream needs about 25 Mbps, and homes with several people streaming at once do better on 300 Mbps or more. Plug the TV or streaming player into the router with a cable if you can, which keeps the picture smooth during fast plays.