MAD Global CEO Mike DuHaime joins Slap Shot Sports Group as co-owner of New Mexico’s new ECHL minor league team.

After a nearly 15-year absence in the state, ECHL announced it will add an expansion team in Rio Rancho beginning in the 2026 season.The franchise, tentatively called the New Mexico Pro Hockey ...

The league announced Friday morning that the Board of Governors has approved the expansion application of Rio Rancho, New Mexico for admittance into the ECHL. The club will begin play in the 2026 ...

ECHL New Mexico will play its games at the Rio Ranchero Event Center, which holds 7,000 people. Rio Ranchero Event Center previously hosted hockey from 2006-2009 and again from 2010-2012.

The addition of a team in New Mexico will give the ECHL 31 teams in two seasons’ time. This year, the league introduced the Tahoe Knight Monsters (Vegas Golden Knights) and Bloomington Bison ...

Matter of fact, there won’t be until October 2026, when pro hockey makes its formal return to New Mexico. There was the celebratory air to match one, however, as plans for the ECHL’s New ...

RIO RANCHO, N.M. (KRQE) – A minor professional hockey team is coming to Rio Rancho, the ECHL announced Friday. The New Mexico Professional Hockey Club will begin play in the 2026-27 season at ...

RIO RANCHO, N.M. (KRQE) – Professional hockey is returning to New Mexico. The ECHL, a development league for the NHL and AHL, has awarded an expansion franchise to the city of Rio Rancho.

On the day the Kelly Cup Division Finals kick off, the ECHL had more big news to share. The league announced Friday morning that the Board of Governors has approved the expansion application of Rio ...