NHL GameCenter Live App Brings Streaming NHL Games to the PlayStation 3

The "Coolest Game on Earth" just got a little cooler. Sony and the NHL have revealed an exclusive partnership, giving PlayStation 3 users the ability to stream live hockey games on their console via a new NHL GameCenter Live application.

The application--which is now available on the PlayStation Store in the US and Canada--can be purchased for $9.99 or downloaded free by PlayStation Plus subscribers.

Similar to the MLB.tv application that launched in April 2010, the NHL GameCenter Live app on PS3 gives sports fans access to game highlights from around the NHL, a complete schedule, standings, and stats for teams and players.

When paired with a premium subscription to NHL GameCenter Live ($169 annually, $20.99 per month), PS3 users have access to even more features, including the ability to stream "40 live out-of-market games every week."

The subcription also includes home and away broadcasts for each available game, "select" playoff broadcasts, full-game replays of out-of-market games the next day or 48-hours later within a user's market, as well as "select" classic games dating back all the way to the 1960s. If old-school is your flavor, users can opt to only subscribe to the classic archive of games, dubbed NHL Vault, for $4.95 per month, instead.

Upon hearing the news, this editor (Note: He's Canadian) purchased a premium subscription to NHL GameCenter Live. To be fair, the police were standing outside his door waiting for the transaction to process, as an NHL subscription of some kind required by Canadian law.