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Boston's Best Bars To Watch Bruins Playoff Hockey

With the Bruins in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the attention of many passionate sports fans turns to hockey, particularly those who enjoy the communal act of watching a live sporting event with friends and families. Luckily for them, Boston is quite accommodating when it comes to bars blaring the latest NHL classic. Whether it's in Southie, the Financial District or the Back Bay, the odds of finding a great bar to watch hockey are always pretty good!
Sullivan's Tap Boston
(credit: Sullivan's Tap)

Sullivan's Tap
168 Canal St.
Boston, MA 02114
www.twitter.com/sullivanstap

Sullivan's Tap is a no-brainer for sports fans, particularly those watching the Bruins game over at The Garden, for this downtown city dive bar is located right near the venue on Canal St., promising good times and cheap, cold beer on tap for fans before and after events. Cash only is the name of the game here at Sullivan's Tap—affectionately known as "Sully's" to its local faithful—so leave the debit and credit cards at home. What's more, leave pretensions at home, for Sully's is a no frills, down home experience of neon, arcade games and cool booze, with no baloney!

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mcgreevy's
(Photo from McGreevy's/Facebook)

McGreevy's
911 Boylston St.
Boston, MA 02115
(617) 262-0911
www.mcgreevysboston.comThe electric excitement of a hockey game is infectious here at McGreevy's Pub in the Back Bay, an infamous and rowdy joint owned by the Bostonian punk/rock band Dropkick Murphys. This Boylston Street bar is located right near Fenway Park on Boylston Street, but make no mistake: McGreevy's caters to sports fans from all walks of life, from baseball and football right on down to the NHL hockey maniacs who pile through the bar's doors to watch the Bruins play on any given night. Bar food and cold beer provide the perfect backdrop to the madness.

porter's
(Photo from Porter's/Facebook)

Porters Bar & Grill
173 Portland St.
Boston, MA 02114
(617) 742-7678
www.portersbar.com

Porters Bar & Grill is also located near The Garden on Portland Street in between Causeway and Traverse streets. This place provides a bar experience a bit elevated when compared to a place like Sullivan's Tap, yet still delivers a comfortable, American bar and grill experience recommended for those seeking to indulge a bit in some tasty food while watching the game. Burgers, fries and a nice variety of beers on tap make Porters Bar & Grill a very cool spot to watch a game, while the friendly service and staff make this place a likely candidate for return visits!

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Cask N Flagon Boston
(credit; casknflagon.com)

Cask 'n Flagon
62 Brookline Ave.
Boston, MA 02215
(617) 536-4840
www.casknflagon.com

The Cask 'n Flagon is a popular tourist bar located in the Fenway Park area, not far from McGreevys Pub over on Brookline Avenue in between Landsdowne and Yawkey Way. Still, many locals and townies stop in here for a burger and a beer, with Cask 'n Flagon providing plenty of televisions playing a wide variety of sports across the spacious bar floor. The Bruins are, of course, very well represented during hockey season, ensuring a crowd almost nightly here at Cask 'n Flagon!

Nightlife & Music Jukebox Bars, JJ Foleys Bar & Grill
Photo Credit: jjfoleysbarandgrill.com

JJ Foley's Cafe
117 E. Berkeley St.
Boston, MA 02118
(617) 728-9101
www.jjfoleyscafe.com

Heading to the Back Bay for our final hockey bar option, JJ Foley's Cafe is a pub with some nicely shadowed atmosphere and a friendly staff who not only serve up beer—bottled and draft, foreign and domestic—to their local patrons, but also a nice balance of traditional bar comfort food fare. In addition to burgers and fries, you'll also find fish 'n chips and even duck tacos for customers with the more adventurous palettes. There's a nice Irish pub atmosphere and a fun jukebox in the corner, as well, making JJ Foley's worth a stop!

George Pacheco has been writing professionally about arts and entertainment for over a decade. A graduate of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, George currently resides in a humble New England home with his wife, cat and massive music and film collection. His work can be found at Examiner.com.

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