Welcome to the AZ Coyotes Insider newsletter. I generally publish stories four to six times per week (some of them free). By subscribing, you’ll be supporting independent, accountable journalism. Subscribe now so you won’t miss a story. Raise your hand if you’re scrambling to find a way to watch the Coyotes on television this season. You’re not alone. A lot of fans have reached out to me, frustrated that their provider/carrier/streaming service no longer carries Fox Sports Arizona, the rights holder to Coyotes games.
I won't go to AT&T. It's a long story starting in the 90's but the current AT&T has failed me three different times and ended when they bought DirecTV and screwed them up too. I came to the realization that growth by buying up other companies, while providing mediocre to bad customer service, is not a recipe for success. So I will not support mediocrity with my dollars.
As Craig pointed out, it is hard to grow the game when it is difficult, at best, to see your local team on TV. The NHL itself has a problem with this very issue with NBC, where you seemingly can always find a game on that has teams from NY, PA or IL.
I am waiting with hope for the next TV contract.
My wife and I are season ticket holders and we won't be attending this season. The Coyotes are treating us fairly, but I have one fully prepaid season on the books and a contract for one more. I really want to attend in 21-22 because Coyotes games are our recreation. But this season I thing that Bob Heethuis and Lindsey Fry will be my only way of seeing Coyotes games unless I try the VPN method.
A minor edit: the photo caption should read "Fox Sports Arizona play-by-play man Matt McConnell (left) and the velour couch that I had in my college dorm (right)."
The VPN option is available but (without reading the NHL tv agreement myself) is often contrary to the terms of service of streaming providers such as Netflix. There are ways to detect VPN usage, it's not actually that difficult, and the providers could cut that option and you're back to zero.
Many of us enjoying the dirt road lifestyle have no access to any cable, leaving only streaming and satellite. For us, having chased the Coyotes from Dish to a streaming service then to YouTube TV, we're done.
Switching again or paying double for the duration of the season is an option, but there's no guarantee that temporary option remains available either.
So, radio with Heeter and Lyndsey it is.
Once Sinclair gets their own streaming service up and running, we'll evaluate their pricing.
Local blackouts for sports have to go. I'd be more than happy to hand the NHL my money for an NHL.tv subscription if I could actually watch every game for the local team I'm interested in. Please NHL, take my money!
This is certainly a frustrating situation, I have jumped from Cox to SlingTV, to YoutubeTV to HuluTV, and now finding streams online wherever I can find them. All just for FSAZ and FSAZ+. I have Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and Amazon Prime. I don't want to pay $50 - $80 a month just for two channels that I will actually use. Hopefully Sinclair will budge eventually. Thanks Craig!
You took ALL of the words right out of my mouth. I have looked at the AT&T TV price sheets for weeks now and simply don't want to play the streaming media shuffle for what amounts to one channel.
Good news is: more ears, like mine, will be trained on Lyndsey and Heeter.
Going to miss the Biz perspective but eagerly looking (listening?) forward to the Fry perspective! I originally cemented my Yotes fandom listening to Curt Keilback on the radio in the '90s so 910AM and iHeartRadio will be my go to for the regular '21 season. I too am done with the service hopping, Dish to Sling to Hulu to YouTubeTV. Perhaps Doaner could influence our viewing options at the end of the FSN-Az contract? Does the FSN-Az contract have any guarantees on how many households have access to watch? If so, surely it is WAY lower nowadays. Does everyone still have rabbit ears...? Univision? EndRant. Apologies. And thanks Craig for keeping the pulse of the faithful front and center! GAMEDAY!
I used to work for DirecTv. Carriage negotiations, especially for sports, is the most stressful component of the job. Everyone thinks their channels are worth a fortune, and there is a limit on how much a customer will pay. The RSNs may need to look to an alacarte streaming platform to survive. But no provider wants to offer a pick and choose option. Teams rely on tv revenue, but maybe it's time for them to revisit blackouts. There was a reason the Braves used to be so popular back in the day....Turner had them in front of everyone almost every game. (America's team)
There were issues even getting Playstation Vue carrying FSAZ+ - they would only carry the main channel which meant missing half of the Coyotes games. I don't know how many times I tweeted at FSAZ, and sometimes even if I watched through their own app it would be buggy or not show up either. Hulu even increased the price on their Live TV to what cable carriers already charge while not even trying to obtain the rights to show FSAZ and others. We were considering switching to YouTube TV but what's the point if there's no hockey on there either? It's absurd and absolutely maddening.
We switched from cable to You Tube TV, it works great, but I am beyond pissed that FSN was dropped, I'm pretty deaf so the radio option is out for me, too hard to understand what announcers are saying, however, can watch on the app, thanks to my son sharing his cox info...I feel funny doing this, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Go Coyotes!
At least according to The Streamable, https://thestreamable.com/sports/nhl/arizona-coyotes , the AT&T TV streaming option includes FSAZ but not FSAZ+. So I'm not sure that AT&T TV is really a great option, either.
I'd like to think that Sinclair will budge at some point, but I don't have hopes for this short season.
I’ve not done this yet but I have heard of others signing up for nhl.tv and using a VPN that puts them outside of the 200-250 miles of a home team radius so they don’t get any blackouts of local teams. Can’t say it works 100% but having just moved to Hulu from Dish during the playoffs and there is no guarantee these issues won’t continue as negotiations come up
I know this a really late post, but we streamed the first game through NHLtv. Ugh! Never again. Going back to DTV, though with NO enthusiasm. But you can't beat the picture quality and stability of Center Ice. And a black out oddity from other areas of the Yotes fan base. Because we are in broadcast territory of both Knights and Avs (who knows?), the Yotes were going to be blacked out 15-16 times this year if we stuck to NHLtv.
There may be a problem with the team and personal relationships with the FSAZ personalities. Too chummy maybe that clouds the business decisions that are necessary to get the Coyotes easily accessible to the public.
They need the business.
And it’s not going to be through wizbang gadgetry and an advanced degree in electronics.
The games have to be easily accessible to the public.
If y'all are interested, the VPN worked for me with NHL TV. We have the option to use a VPN for work. I usually don't unless I need something from a network that isn't in the cloud, but I used our Eastern US VPN tonight, which I think places you in Boston, and I was able to watch.
I won't go to AT&T. It's a long story starting in the 90's but the current AT&T has failed me three different times and ended when they bought DirecTV and screwed them up too. I came to the realization that growth by buying up other companies, while providing mediocre to bad customer service, is not a recipe for success. So I will not support mediocrity with my dollars.
As Craig pointed out, it is hard to grow the game when it is difficult, at best, to see your local team on TV. The NHL itself has a problem with this very issue with NBC, where you seemingly can always find a game on that has teams from NY, PA or IL.
I am waiting with hope for the next TV contract.
My wife and I are season ticket holders and we won't be attending this season. The Coyotes are treating us fairly, but I have one fully prepaid season on the books and a contract for one more. I really want to attend in 21-22 because Coyotes games are our recreation. But this season I thing that Bob Heethuis and Lindsey Fry will be my only way of seeing Coyotes games unless I try the VPN method.
A minor edit: the photo caption should read "Fox Sports Arizona play-by-play man Matt McConnell (left) and the velour couch that I had in my college dorm (right)."
The VPN option is available but (without reading the NHL tv agreement myself) is often contrary to the terms of service of streaming providers such as Netflix. There are ways to detect VPN usage, it's not actually that difficult, and the providers could cut that option and you're back to zero.
Many of us enjoying the dirt road lifestyle have no access to any cable, leaving only streaming and satellite. For us, having chased the Coyotes from Dish to a streaming service then to YouTube TV, we're done.
Switching again or paying double for the duration of the season is an option, but there's no guarantee that temporary option remains available either.
So, radio with Heeter and Lyndsey it is.
Once Sinclair gets their own streaming service up and running, we'll evaluate their pricing.
Local blackouts for sports have to go. I'd be more than happy to hand the NHL my money for an NHL.tv subscription if I could actually watch every game for the local team I'm interested in. Please NHL, take my money!
This is certainly a frustrating situation, I have jumped from Cox to SlingTV, to YoutubeTV to HuluTV, and now finding streams online wherever I can find them. All just for FSAZ and FSAZ+. I have Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and Amazon Prime. I don't want to pay $50 - $80 a month just for two channels that I will actually use. Hopefully Sinclair will budge eventually. Thanks Craig!
You took ALL of the words right out of my mouth. I have looked at the AT&T TV price sheets for weeks now and simply don't want to play the streaming media shuffle for what amounts to one channel.
Good news is: more ears, like mine, will be trained on Lyndsey and Heeter.
Going to miss the Biz perspective but eagerly looking (listening?) forward to the Fry perspective! I originally cemented my Yotes fandom listening to Curt Keilback on the radio in the '90s so 910AM and iHeartRadio will be my go to for the regular '21 season. I too am done with the service hopping, Dish to Sling to Hulu to YouTubeTV. Perhaps Doaner could influence our viewing options at the end of the FSN-Az contract? Does the FSN-Az contract have any guarantees on how many households have access to watch? If so, surely it is WAY lower nowadays. Does everyone still have rabbit ears...? Univision? EndRant. Apologies. And thanks Craig for keeping the pulse of the faithful front and center! GAMEDAY!
I used to work for DirecTv. Carriage negotiations, especially for sports, is the most stressful component of the job. Everyone thinks their channels are worth a fortune, and there is a limit on how much a customer will pay. The RSNs may need to look to an alacarte streaming platform to survive. But no provider wants to offer a pick and choose option. Teams rely on tv revenue, but maybe it's time for them to revisit blackouts. There was a reason the Braves used to be so popular back in the day....Turner had them in front of everyone almost every game. (America's team)
There were issues even getting Playstation Vue carrying FSAZ+ - they would only carry the main channel which meant missing half of the Coyotes games. I don't know how many times I tweeted at FSAZ, and sometimes even if I watched through their own app it would be buggy or not show up either. Hulu even increased the price on their Live TV to what cable carriers already charge while not even trying to obtain the rights to show FSAZ and others. We were considering switching to YouTube TV but what's the point if there's no hockey on there either? It's absurd and absolutely maddening.
We switched from cable to You Tube TV, it works great, but I am beyond pissed that FSN was dropped, I'm pretty deaf so the radio option is out for me, too hard to understand what announcers are saying, however, can watch on the app, thanks to my son sharing his cox info...I feel funny doing this, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Go Coyotes!
At least according to The Streamable, https://thestreamable.com/sports/nhl/arizona-coyotes , the AT&T TV streaming option includes FSAZ but not FSAZ+. So I'm not sure that AT&T TV is really a great option, either.
I'd like to think that Sinclair will budge at some point, but I don't have hopes for this short season.
I’ve not done this yet but I have heard of others signing up for nhl.tv and using a VPN that puts them outside of the 200-250 miles of a home team radius so they don’t get any blackouts of local teams. Can’t say it works 100% but having just moved to Hulu from Dish during the playoffs and there is no guarantee these issues won’t continue as negotiations come up
I know this a really late post, but we streamed the first game through NHLtv. Ugh! Never again. Going back to DTV, though with NO enthusiasm. But you can't beat the picture quality and stability of Center Ice. And a black out oddity from other areas of the Yotes fan base. Because we are in broadcast territory of both Knights and Avs (who knows?), the Yotes were going to be blacked out 15-16 times this year if we stuck to NHLtv.
I know it can't happen b/c of TV contracts, but I'd pay the Coyotes for an on-demand in house video feed of the game. No commentators - just hockey.
There may be a problem with the team and personal relationships with the FSAZ personalities. Too chummy maybe that clouds the business decisions that are necessary to get the Coyotes easily accessible to the public.
They need the business.
And it’s not going to be through wizbang gadgetry and an advanced degree in electronics.
The games have to be easily accessible to the public.
If y'all are interested, the VPN worked for me with NHL TV. We have the option to use a VPN for work. I usually don't unless I need something from a network that isn't in the cloud, but I used our Eastern US VPN tonight, which I think places you in Boston, and I was able to watch.