A new, one-of-a-kind broadcast will be available during this year's Stanley Cup Final ... the NHL just revealed it's going to offer a telecast of the championship series entirely in American Sign Language.
The league announced the unique broadcast of the Florida Panthers vs. Edmonton Oilers contests will begin when the puck drops on Game 1 on Saturday.
NHL in ASL will feature live Deaf broadcasters providing real-time coverage of play-by-play and color commentary in ASL for the 2024 #StanleyCup Final. The broadcast is available on @ESPNPlus & @Sportsnet+.
— NHL (@NHL) June 5, 2024
📺: @EdmontonOilers vs. @FlaPanthers Game 1 on Saturday, June 8 at 8p ET pic.twitter.com/CeJBixCiH2
It will feature Jason Altmann -- a third-generation Deaf -- and Noah Blankenship ... who works in the Office of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services in Denver.
"The opportunity to do a Deaf-centric broadcast of a premier sporting event in ASL is a positive, seismic change for the Deaf community," Altmann said in a statement Wednesday. "As a sports fan growing up, I couldn't relate with the broadcasters because some elements were not well captured with closed captioning. Now, we are creating an opportunity for Deaf sports fans and viewers to watch Deaf broadcasters and feel engaged through ASL."
NHL exec Steve Mayer stated the broadcast will feature a "more conversational and relaxed" style ... as opposed to the traditional play-by-play and commentary ones sports fans have grown accustomed to.
It's all part of a partnership the NHL has with P-X-P -- which has helped the league with ASL interpretation before with events like the Winter Classic, All-Star Weekend and others.
Mayer said he hopes the broadcast will expand into the 2024-25 season.
Fans can tune in by streaming on ESPN+ in the U.S. or Sportsnet+ in Canada.