Amazon just became part of hockey nights in Canada, and the reaction from fans has been anything but welcoming.
Rogers and Sportsnet announced a 12 year sublicensing agreement that hands Amazon the rights to broadcast Wednesday night games nationally across the country.
Frank Seravalli shared the news Monday, and it didn't take long for hockey fans to start pushing back.
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For a fan base already juggling cable, streaming apps, and regional blackouts, adding another platform into the mix is exactly the kind of change that tests patience fast.
Twelve years is a long runway for a deal like this, locking in Amazon's presence on Wednesday nights well into the next decade.
That length is part of what's fueling the frustration. This isn't a trial run or a one season experiment.
Amazon also grabs a slice of the Stanley Cup playoffs
The regular season slate is only part of it. Amazon will also broadcast select Stanley Cup playoff games in Canada under this same agreement.
That includes two first round matchups and one second round series every year, real playoff hockey now living outside the usual broadcast home.
For fans who've built their whole viewing routine around Sportsnet and CBC during playoff runs, that's a genuine disruption, not just a regular season inconvenience.
Streaming fatigue is real, and every new platform added to the mix is another subscription or login standing between a fan and the game.
Is this really about better access, or just another rights holder carving out its own slice of a growing streaming pie?
Rogers still holds the core of NHL broadcasting in Canada, and this sublicensing deal doesn't change that foundation.
But foundations don't stop fans from being annoyed when a name like Amazon starts showing up between periods of a Stanley Cup series.
Whether this actually improves access or just adds friction won't be clear until fans are living with it night after night this fall.
Plenty of fans have already promised not to tune in for Amazon's broadcasts, with some even threatening to step away from the NHL altogether over it.
Others simply can't afford to stack another streaming subscription on top of what they're already paying, and that leaves them stuck missing games from their favorite team through no fault of their own.
Should Amazon be broadcasting NHL playoff games in Canada?
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