Sports Streaming

How to Watch CHL Junior Hockey in Canada (OHL, WHL, QMJHL)

August 9, 2026

Hockey
CHL
Canada

The Canadian Hockey League is the umbrella for the three major junior leagues — the OHL in Ontario, the WHL across the west, and the QMJHL in Quebec and the Maritimes. Together they are the primary development path to the NHL for North American players, and roughly half of every NHL draft comes out of them. Following the CHL from home is a mix of national broadcasts and league-run streaming, and the split confuses people. Here is how it actually works.

Key takeaways

TSN carries the CHL championship series and the Memorial Cup nationally; RDS covers the QMJHL in French.
Regular-season games are mostly on league-run streaming rather than national television.
The regular season runs September through March, with playoffs into May.
Junior hockey is the single best NHL draft scouting available to a home viewer.
TiviLeaf includes TSN and RDS from $9 CAD/month.

Where CHL Hockey Airs in Canada

CHL coverage by competition
Competition	Where it airs	Timing
Regular season	League streaming platforms	September to March
League playoffs (early rounds)	League streaming, some regional TV	March to April
OHL / WHL / QMJHL finals	TSN (RDS for QMJHL)	May
Memorial Cup	TSN and RDS	Late May
Top Prospects Game	TSN	January

The pattern to understand: the deeper the playoffs go, the more likely a game is on national television. Regular-season coverage is largely a league product, while the championship series and the Memorial Cup move to TSN.

The Three Leagues

OHL (Ontario Hockey League): 20 teams across Ontario, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Largest media market of the three.
WHL (Western Hockey League): 22 teams from Manitoba to British Columbia plus the US Pacific Northwest. The widest geographic spread, and the most demanding travel schedule in junior hockey.
QMJHL: teams across Quebec and Atlantic Canada. French-language coverage on RDS, and traditionally the most offence-friendly of the three leagues.

Why Junior Hockey Is Worth Following

Beyond the local-team appeal, there is a specific reason to watch: this is where NHL draft classes are decided. A viewer who follows the CHL through the winter has seen most of the top-ranked North American skaters play thirty or forty times before the draft in June. Nobody watching only NHL games has that.

Draft-year players get top-line minutes, unlike prospects in professional leagues.
Games are high-scoring and open, because the defensive systems are less refined than in the NHL.
Small-market Canadian cities often have a CHL team as their only high-level hockey.
Tickets and travel are affordable, which makes the broadcast a complement rather than a replacement.

Option 1 — TSN Direct

Approximately $19.99 CAD per month for all five TSN feeds. Covers the championship series, the Memorial Cup and the Top Prospects Game — the nationally televised portion of the CHL calendar.

Option 2 — IPTV

TiviLeaf includes TSN, TSN2–5, RDS and RDS2 from $9 CAD per month, which covers the same national broadcasts alongside the NHL season running in parallel. Plans and pricing are listed at tivileaf.com/#pricing.

Option 3 — League Streaming

For regular-season games, the leagues run their own subscription streaming. This is the only route to a full season of a specific team, and it is worth checking directly with the league your team plays in, since pricing and platform vary between the OHL, WHL and QMJHL and change between seasons.

Best Devices for Watching

Amazon Firestick / Fire TV: the most common streaming stick in Canadian homes. See the Fire TV setup guide.
Samsung and LG smart TVs: app support built in, no extra box needed. See the Samsung guide or the LG guide.
Apple TV: the smoothest option for 4K streams. See the Apple TV guide.
Android TV, Google TV and NVIDIA Shield: including budget boxes like the Walmart onn. See the Google TV guide.
iPhone, iPad and Android phones: for watching on the move or on a second screen.

Included with TiviLeaf

Watch CHL junior hockey with TiviLeaf

Every channel below comes in a single plan from $9 CAD/month.

What you get

TSN, TSN2, TSN3, TSN4 and TSN5
RDS and RDS2
Sportsnet, Sportsnet One and Sportsnet 360
TVA Sports

Why it is the better deal: TSN Direct alone is about $20/month. TiviLeaf bundles all of the above from $9 CAD/month.

One plan, not three. No juggling separate apps, logins and bills.
Instant activation. Set up in under ten minutes on any device you already own.
No contract. Monthly or yearly, cancel any time, no early-termination fee.
7-day replay. Miss it live and it is still there for a week — nothing to record.
Every screen. One subscription across your TV, phone and tablet.

View plans See the full channel list

FAQ

What channel is CHL hockey on in Canada?

TSN carries the OHL, WHL and QMJHL championship series and the Memorial Cup nationally, with RDS providing French coverage of the QMJHL. Regular-season games are mostly on league-run streaming platforms rather than national television.

Can I watch a full CHL season on TV?

Not on national television. TSN carries the championship series and the Memorial Cup, but regular-season coverage is primarily through the leagues' own streaming services.

What is the difference between the OHL, WHL and QMJHL?

They are the three regional leagues that make up the CHL. The OHL covers Ontario and the northern US, the WHL spans western Canada and the US Pacific Northwest, and the QMJHL covers Quebec and Atlantic Canada with French coverage on RDS.

Is junior hockey good for following the NHL draft?

It is the best available to a home viewer. Roughly half of each NHL draft class comes from the CHL, and draft-eligible players get top-line minutes there rather than the limited roles they would have in a professional league.