The hockey season is about to really be in full swing this week after the start of the ECHL season. After weeks of training camp and preparations, the league is set to hold its opening night Friday with a slate of eight games as part of a weekend schedule that will feature 27 total games including 14 on Saturday night.
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It all begins at 7 p.m. ET Friday night with a slate of four games including the inaugural ECHL contest for the Trenton Ironhawks, who will be on the road against 2025 Kelly Cup champion Trois-Rivières Lions to get things going.
The final game of the night will also mark a first in ECHL history as the New Mexico Goatheads will play their inaugural home opener against perennial power Idaho Steelheads in what could become a fun Mountain Division rivalry.
Here’s the rest of the opening night schedule.
ECHL Opening Night Schedule
Friday, Oct. 16
- South Carolina vs. Jacksonville Icemen, 7 p.m. ET
- Trenton Ironhawks vs. Trois-Rivières Lions, 7 p.m. ET
- Reading Royals vs. Greensboro Gargoyles, 7 p.m. ET
- Norfolk Admirals vs. Savannah Ghost Pirates, 7 p.m. ET
- Atlanta Gladiators vs. Greenville Swamp Rabbits, 7:05 p.m. ET
- Wheeling Nailers vs. Indy Fuel, 7:15 p.m. ET
- Rapid City Rush vs. Kansas City Mavericks, 8:05 p.m. ET
- Idaho Steelheads vs. New Mexico Goatheads, 9 p.m. ET
So what are we all going to be paying attention to in the ECHL this season? Here are a bunch of storylines to track.
New Beginnings In The ECHL
The Trenton Ironhawks and New Mexico Goatheads will open a new era for the ECHL as the two newest clubs in the league.
Trenton came into existence after the Utah Grizzlies were relocated, bringing ECHL hockey back to New Jersey for the first time since 2013 when the Trenton Titans patrolled the ice. The Ironhawks will be led by veteran head coach and two-time Kelly Cup champion Chuck Weber, who spent the previous season with the Iowa Heartlanders, which went on voluntary suspension after last season.
The Ironhawks are affiliated with the New York Islanders and Hamilton Hammers, keeping Isles prospects relatively close to the parent club.
Over in New Mexico, the Goatheads will be led by former NHL tough guy Zack Stortini and are affiliated with the Colorado Avalanche. They’re joining the league as an expansion team and bring pro hockey back to Rio Rancho for the first time since 2009.
It’s always fun to see the new teams in action as we get new logos and new uniforms to ogle at. Plus, we’re expecting more teams over the next couple of years as the ECHL continues its march to getting to 32 teams to mirror the AHL and NHL.
Old Standby
The story of professional hockey in the United States cannot be told without the Fort Wayne Komets. One of the longest-running professional sports organizations in North America, the Komets will celebrate 75 years of hockey this season.
Learn more about the meaning behind the threads 🧵#LetsGoKomets pic.twitter.com/d10Ll54oRC
— Fort Wayne Komets (@FWKomets) August 3, 2026
The club will officially celebrate its 75th anniversary during a fan fest from Nov. 13-15, which will include games against rivals Toledo Walleye and Cincinnati Cyclones, as well as a number of fan events. The team will also be wearing some incredible throwback jerseys over the course of the season.
The team has spanned different leagues and various iterations, but remains one of the strongest teams in the league and have designs on winning it all again in 2027.
This season, they’re led by Ben Boudreau who returns to the club six years after leading them to their most recent championship, the 2021 Kelly Cup.
It is going to be a great season of throwbacks and a lot of fun hockey for the K’s.
Milestone Watch
Justin Taylor is 65 games away from becoming the first ECHL player to play in 1,000 games in his career. He enters the season with 935, which is a record for games played already. The 37-year-old signed with the Wheeling Nailers this offseason after a 20-goal campaign with the Adirondack Thunder.
Forward Justin Taylor will be joining us for the 2026-27 season!
— Wheeling Nailers (@WheelingNailers) August 10, 2026
Taylor finished last season with the Adirondack Thunder, where he played in his 935th ECHL game. He currently holds the record for the most ECHL games played.
Welcome to Wheeling, Justin!
📰:… pic.twitter.com/f2AuNjRgtj
Allen Americans head coach Steve Martinson is also about to join a 1,000-game club. He is just two games away from 1,000 games behind an ECHL bench in his career. He has helmed ECHL teams including the San Diego Gulls, Elmira Jackals and the Allen Americans. Martinson returned behind the bench last season after three seasons away from the league.
Goalie Haven
The ECHL develops players of all stripes, but NHL teams are getting much more aggressive about making sure some of their most prized goalie prospects spend some time in the ECHL to get the playing time they need.
Last season, we saw a few goalies that played in ECHL games and NHL games during the same year.
Vyacheslav Butayets played 44 games for the Tulsa Oilers, but also got a game with the Anaheim Ducks, while Arsenii Sergeev saw 12 games with the Rapid City Rush and earned his first NHL win in one appearance with the Calgary Flames.
You can often expect to see some high-end prospects in the ECHL in the crease. NHL rosters this season include recent ECHL alumni like Sebastian Cossa, now with the Utah Mammoth, and Sergei Murashov, now with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Sergei Murashov wasted NO time in his journey to the NHL:
— FloHockey (@FloHockey) November 9, 2025
2024-25: Wheeling Nailers (ECHL) & WBS Penguins (AHL)
2025-26: WBS Penguins (AHL) & Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL Debut)@NHL | @TheAHL | @ECHL | @penguins | @WBSPenguins | @WheelingNailers #NHL #AHL #ECHL #LetsGoPens… pic.twitter.com/S4EleN5XCn
In all 64 ECHL alumni were on NHL opening-night rosters to start this season.
Among the goalie prospects to keep an eye on in the ECHL this season:
- Adam Gajan, Indy Fuel (CHI)
- Scott Ratzlaff, Orlando Solar Bears (BUF)
- Carter Gylander, Toledo Walleye (DET)
- Timofei Obvintsev, Cincinnati Cyclones (TOR)
Are The Florida Everblades Inevitable?
They are the Grim Reapers of the ECHL. They are the team that you don't want to run into when the calendar flips to May and June. They are, in four of the last five years, the ECHL Kelly Cup Champions. They are the Florida Everblades.
The question we enter every season is who has enough to knock off the Blades? Two years ago, it took historic goaltending from Luke Cavallin and the Trois-Rivières Lions to dispatch the perennial powers, but that only left the Florida men hungrier and they exacted revenge on a very difficult playoff journey that saw them claim their title with a double-overtime victory to stun Kansas City.
There are some changes, though. Florida's ownership has purchased the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL. That means a new affiliate for the Everblades -- as the Penguins ended their long-standing relationship with the Wheeling Nailers.
THE EVERBLADES HAVE A NEW NHL AFFILIATE 🐧
— FloHockey (@FloHockey) July 16, 2026
After ending their 29-year affiliation with the Wheeling Nailers earlier today, the Pittsburgh Penguins will keep their farm system under one ownership group and call the Kelly Cup Champion @FL_Everblades their new ECHL affiliate pic.twitter.com/dZOPqBel5S
GM Kyle Dubas in Pittsburgh has long been a fan of getting his prospects more time in the ECHL when they need more experience. That has often led to talented players going to the affiliate, especially in key times during the season.
Does that mean Florida only gets better? They will have some veterans to replace, but as long as Cam Johnson -- a surefire ECHL Hall of Famer -- is manning the crease, everyone will expect Florida to have a chance.
Will anyone be able to stop them? The target is firmly on their backs, that's for sure.
New Affiliations In 2026-27
Here are the ECHL teams with new NHL affiliations this season
- Bloomington Bison - Winnipeg Jets
- Florida Everblades - Pittsburgh Penguins
- Jacksonville Icemen - Minnesota Wild
- New Mexico Goatheads - Colorado Avalanche
- Norfolk Admirals - Independent
- Trenton Ironhawks - New York Islanders
- Wheeling Nailers - Columbus Blue Jackets
- Worcester Railers - St. Louis Blues
Watch The ECHL On FloHockey
The ECHL is going to give you a lot of entertainment over the course of the season. From wild results, to impassioned rivalries, historic organizations and a number of future NHL names to know, there’s always a good excuse to throw on a game.
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