More Southern Expansion

The ECHL announced today that they have reached an agreement for their 31st franchise that will begin play in 2026-27. We've seen the ECHL expand rapidly in recent years with franchises in Iowa, Trois-Rivières, Savannah, Bloomington, Tahoe, and Greensboro all being added since 2021. It seems like there's at least one announcement about expansion annually with the ECHL, and today was that day as they'll establish a franchise in Rio Rancho, New Mexico for the '26-27 season!

Before we start downplaying this announcement, one should know that Rio Rancho is a smaller city that sits just north of Albuquerque and about an hour south of Santa Fe on Highway 25. It has a relatively new arena in the Rio Rancho Events Center that was opened in 2006, and it seats 6000 fans for hockey as it once housed all of the NAHL's New Mexico Mustangs and the Central Hockey Leagues' New Mexico Scorpions. According to 2020 census numbers, Rio Rancho had a rapidly-growing population of 104,046 with forecasts aiming for 143,000 residents by 2040.

A growing city with an arena waiting for a tenant? That sounds like the right ingredients to make the ECHL listen to offers.

Rio Rancho has industries which will lead to a fanbase as Intel has a test facility there and Hewlett-Packard has a large office there while Bank of America has a significant presence with both branches and a call centre in the city. Just over 40% of the households in Rio Rancho have children with just under 60% of households being in that key demographic of 18-65 years of age. The median income for families is $52,233, so the ECHL will need to keep an eye on ticket and merchandise prices if they hope see this franchise flourish.

The CHL's New Mexico Scorpions started off strong in Albuquerque as they averaged more than 4000 people per game from 2001-05 despite missing the playoffs in three of four seasons. After pausing operations for the 2005-06 season, the '06-07 campaign after moving to Rio Rancho was the most successful for the Scorpions as they advanced to the Southern Conference Final against the Laredo Bucks, but they'd lose that series in five games. The move to Rio Rancho saw average attendance dip below 4000 fans per game, and the Scorpions never recovered as attendance continued to drop in the next two seasons before the CHL folded in 2009.

In terms of history, the Scorpions never boasted a lot of big-name talent during their days, but a few NHLers wrapped up their careers in New Mexico. Alek Stojanov played two seasons there at the end of his career from 1999-2001, Ryan VandenBussche spent nine games there in 2006-07, and goaltender Mike Minard - he of one game with the Edmonton Oilers - played 33 games in New Mexico in 2007-08. Former Sudbury Wolves forward Chris Robertson held the team's scoring record with 88 goals and 218 points in 186 games while another Ontario-born player in Chris MacDonald shares the all-time goal-scoring lead with Robertson at 88 goals in 181 games. Czech-born defender Vladimir Hartinger has the all-time penalty minute total at 389 minutes in the sin bin.

According to the announcement today, REV Entertainment's Sports Management division will oversee all team operations. This won't be REV Entertainment's first venture into professional sports as they are the official event partners of the Texas Rangers while operating the Cleburne Railroaders and Kane County Cougars of the American Association of Professional Baseball. They also were a managing partner for the ECHL's Allen Americans, and have worked with a number of leagues, venues, and organizations across the globe including the Dallas Stars who will serve as hockey operations consultants for REV Entertainment to get this team off the ground.

"REV has a proven track record of managing professional sports teams at the highest level, and we are thrilled with their commitment to bring professional hockey back to the state of New Mexico," ECHL Commissioner Ryan Crelin said in the announcement today. "This expansion speaks to the growth of our game throughout the continent, and will be an exciting addition to our rivalries in the Mountain Division, and a geographic fit for Affiliation development."

With the Dallas Stars being involved in this venture, I would expect them to likely move their affiliation from the Idaho Steelheads to this new New Mexico team once it begins play in 2026-27. It's a bit of a hike at 10.5 hours from Rio Rancho to Cedar Park, Texas where the AHL Texas Stars play, but it's a far shorter trip than the one players are required to make from Boise, Idaho. This could allow for Boise to affiliate themselves with a closer NHL partner rather than one that's 25 hours away - a full flight via a commercial airline away.

"We are incredibly excited to bring professional hockey back to New Mexico and to expand the ECHL's footprint with the league's 31st Member," REV Entertainment President Sean Decker said today. "The Rio Rancho community has a rich history with the sport, and we look forward to building a team that will be a source of pride for fans across the region. We can't wait to drop the puck in 2026!"

It appears that this New Mexico team is already moving quickly as well. The franchise has launched a "Name the Team" contest on their NMProHockey.com site, and the logo being used as a placeholder for now feels awfully Utah Hockey Club-like on the page. They will have a name, it seems, when the 2026-27 season starts unlike the Utah team, but a little conspiracy never hurt anyone when the Utah Hockey Club has their affiliation with the Allen Americans who, if you're drawing lines, was once operated by REV Entertainment.

As it stands, the only three NHL clubs without official NHL affiliates right now are the Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Ottawa Senators, so I'm sure we're going to see a carousel of affiliation changes over the next few seasons as teams streamline and re-align their affiliates to have players closer to one another in case of call-ups. With Rio Rancho joining the fray in 2026-27, the ECHL will be one team away from their goal of having one ECHL affiliate for each NHL franchise. And I'm sure we're not far from Team #32.

¡Bienvenido de nuevo al mundo del hockey, Nuevo México!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!