Boston city leaders have announced the return of the Boston Playoff Hub, which will turn Canal Street into a pedestrian-only area for fans to gather before and during home playoff games at TD Garden.

Canal Street will go car-free for Bruins and Celtics home playoff games, allowing approved restaurants and bars to extend their outdoor patios onto the sidewalk on Canal Street, Mayor Michelle Wu and the Downtown North Association announced on Thursday.

The Playoff Hub will be free and open to the public. Canal Street will be closed three hours before the start of game time, to one hour after the game ends. The extended patios can open three hours before the start of the game, and must close an hour after the start of the game.

"With both the Bruins and the Celtics in the playoffs this year, we're excited to give Boston fans a space to safely gather, cheer on their favorite teams, and support our local businesses," Mayor Wu said. "I'm grateful to our partners for teaming up with the City to bring back the Playoff Hub, creating a fun experience for our hockey and basketball fans."

Businesses around TD Garden are preparing for an electric few weeks.

"There's no question Canal and Causeway will be the center of the city," said Rich Ackerman, vice president of human resources for Mass. Bay Brewing Company.

Ackerman said the company will be setting up a beer garden on Canal Street ahead of Saturday's Celtics game.

"We're able to have an outdoor beer garden here, we're going to have the sausage guy serving some sausage, we're going to have 10 different variety of products. It's a 'Harpoon and friends garden' at the Garden, so it's going to be a great opportunity for people to come out and enjoy before the game tomorrow."

Over at Sullivan's Tap, Assistant Manager Derick Mains said the foot traffic will be helpful.

"That's what you want. You want foot traffic. You want people to come to the area, feel comfortable," Mains said. "It's wide open, it's a little more. So I think it works well."

He added that people head to Canal Street just to watch the game at local bars, not needing tickets inside.

"This is the time of year," he said. "This is what we live for."

The city says the return of the Boston Playoff Hub is part of a citywide effort to reconfigure public spaces in Boston, and activate areas for businesses, visitors and residents.

"This is a great opportunity to activate the space on Canal Street and create a vibrant experience for everyone to enjoy," said Segun Idowu, chief of economic opportunity and inclusion. "This also serves as an opportunity to support the local businesses in the area during this very exciting time for Boston sports."

The Celtics begin the first round of the NBA Playoffs against the Atlanta Hawks Saturday at 3:30 p.m. Saturday against, with the Bruins facing the Florida Panthers in a Stanley Cup Playoff series that begins at 7:30 p.m. on Marathon Monday.

Parking regulation signs will be posted ahead of the Celtics game on Saturday. Vehicles in violation of the posted signs will be towed.