RIO RANCHO, N.M. — Sports in the desert just got a whole lot cooler – New Mexico’s first professional hockey team in 17 years officially has a name.
The team unveiled New Mexico Goatheads as the official name Monday night at the Rio Rancho Events Center where they will soon play. Goatheads, Tarantula Hawks and Cutthroats were the finalists to become the team name.
The New Mexico Goatheads will hit the ice during the 2026-27 season as the newest franchise in the ECHL, a minor league of professional ice hockey. They’ll play home games – 36 in all – at the Rio Rancho Events Center.
This team is different from the New Mexico Ice Wolves. The Ice Wolves is a junior development team that gets prospects ready for college play.
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