PENN Entertainment has signed a partnership for its brands, ESPN Bet in the US and theScore Bet in Ontario, to become official sports betting partners of the National Hockey League (NHL).

The deal allows the two brands to take advantage of marketing opportunities with the league, a host of intellectual property rights, and cooperation across League programming. This cooperation includes ESPN broadcasts of NHL games on ESPN and ABC, as part of the seven-year broadcast agreement between the league and ESPN signed in March 2021.

Entitlements begin immediately, with the NHL currently around a quarter of the way through the regular season. Opportunities for activation include the Stanley Cup playoffs, broadcast on ESPN and ABC, and the All-Star Weekend.

ESPN Bet launched this month as part of a $1.5 billion partnership between PENN Entertainment and ESPN. The sportsbook took over licenses from PENN’s previous sports betting product, Barstool Sportsbook, in 17 states. theScore Bet launched in Ontario in March 2022, leveraging the popularity of Canadian sports media brand theScore.

“From day one, we’ve said our media rights deal with ESPN and The Walt Disney Company has been a big win for our fans and our League, and this new collaboration is further testament to the value of our partnership. There’s definite excitement in being one of the first leagues to partner with ESPN BET and PENN Entertainment,” said NHL Vice President of Business Development Jason Jazayeri in a press release.

“The recent launch of ESPN BET in the US is extremely exciting, and we’re thrilled to collaborate with the NHL to help market our new sports betting experience,” added Senior Vice President of Marketing and Content at PENN Interactive Aubrey Levy.