Who will skate away with Lord Stanley’s Cup at the end is anyone’s guess, but the next seven games will decide the 2020 champion — almost a full year after the 2019-20 season began.
Man, 2020.
Below you’ll find everything you need to know about watching the 2020 NHL playoffs, including series-by-series TV schedules and live streaming information.
MORE: Watch NHL playoff games live with fuboTV (7-day free trial)
NHL playoff bracket 2020
NHL scores & results
(All times Eastern)
Stanley Cup Final
Tampa Bay Lightning (2) vs. Dallas Stars (3)
Eastern Conference
Conference finals
Tampa Bay Lightning (2) vs. New York Islanders (6)
Second round
Philadelphia Flyers (1) vs. New York Islanders (6)
Tampa Bay Lightning (2) vs. Boston Bruins (4)
- If necessary.
First round
Philadelphia Flyers (1) vs. Montreal Canadiens (8)
Tampa Bay Lightning (2) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (7)
Washington Capitals (3) vs. New York Islanders (6)
Boston Bruins (4) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (5)
Western Conference
Conference finals
Vegas Golden Knights (1) vs. Dallas Stars (3)
Second round
Vegas Golden Knights (1) vs. Vancouver Canucks (5)
Colorado Avalanche (2) vs. Dallas Stars (3)
*If necessary.
First round
Vegas Golden Knights (1) vs. Chicago Blackhawks (8)
Colorado Avalanche (2) vs. Arizona Coyotes (7)
Dallas Stars (3) vs. Calgary Flames (6)
St. Louis Blues (4) vs. Vancouver Canucks (5)
How do the NHL playoffs work?
The NHL held a “qualifying round” in each conference before the official start of the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs. The top four seeds in each conference earned automatic playoff berths, leaving the 5-12 seeds in each conference to face off in best-of-five series to determine the remaining spots in the playoff bracket.
Meanwhile, the top four seeds participated in a round-robin tournament to determine their seeding for Round 1 with the Flyers and the Golden Knights securing the No. 1 seeds in their respective conferences.
Now that the playoff bracket is set, each series will be a best-of-seven format from the first round through the Stanley Cup Final, as is customary. The only major difference is teams from both conferences will reseed after each round, rather than the division-specific seeds in recent years.
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NHL schedule 2020
The first round of the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs started Tuesday, Aug. 11, and concluded Friday, Aug. 21. Round 2 begins Saturday, Aug. 22, followed by the conference finals, which are tentatively scheduled for Sept. 8 depending on the second-round outcomes.
The Stanley Cup Final is scheduled to begin Sept. 22 and be completed no later than Oct. 4.
Stanley Cup Final
Saturday, Sept. 19
Monday, Sept. 21
Wednesday, Sept. 23
Friday, Sept. 25
Sasturday, Sept. 26
Monday, Sept. 28
Wednesday, Sept. 30
Conference finals
Sunday, Sept. 6
Monday, Sept. 7
Tuesday, Sept. 8
Wednesday, Sept. 9
Thursday, Sept. 10
Friday, Sept. 11
Saturday, Sept. 12
Sunday, Sept. 13
Monday, Sept. 14
Tuesday, Sept. 15
Wednesday, Sept. 16
Thursday, Sept. 17
Friday, Sept. 18
Saturday, Sept. 19
Round 2
Saturday, Aug. 22
Sunday, Aug. 23
Monday, Aug. 24
Tuesday, Aug. 25
Wednesday, Aug. 26
Thursday, Aug. 27
All games have been postponed
MORE: NHL players will not play Thursday, Friday: ‘Some things are bigger than sports’
Friday, Aug. 28
All games have been postponed
MORE: NHL players unite, take a stand: ‘Hate their guts on the ice, but I couldn’t be more proud’
Saturday, Aug. 29
Sunday, Aug. 30
Monday, Aug. 31
Tuesday, Sept. 1
Wednesday, Sept. 2
Thursday, Sept. 3
Friday, Sept. 4
Saturday, Sept. 5
- If necessary.
Round 1
Tuesday, Aug. 11
Wednesday, Aug. 12
Thursday, Aug. 13
Friday, Aug. 14
Saturday, Aug. 15
Sunday, Aug. 16
Monday, Aug. 17
Tuesday, Aug. 18
Wednesday, Aug. 19
Thursday, Aug. 20
Friday, Aug. 21
