The New Mexico Goatheads are a little more than a month from their inaugural season opener.
But ahead of the Colorado Avalanche affiliate’s Oct. 16 matchup against the Idaho Steelheads at the Rio Rancho Events Center, it’s worth taking a look at how ECHL franchises construct their rosters — and how it differs from other minor-league sports.
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In this case, compared to Double-A baseball (the closest equivalent to the ECHL).
Here are some things to know:
Salary cap
DOUBLE-A: This level does not have a salary cap, but there is a salary floor. Players earn a minimum of a little more than $1,000 per week.
Salaries — whether drafted or on a minor-league deal — are paid by MLB teams, not the minor-league affiliates.
ECHL: The league has both a salary cap and salary floor.
For the 2026-27 season, teams are allowed to spend $18,610 per week for the season’s first 30 days. After that, the figure drops to $18,000 for the rest of the season. The weekly floor from start to finish is $13,680.
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Players’ minimum weekly salaries, for those on ECHL-only contracts, are broken in two tiers — rookie and returning.
Rookie pay starts at $610. Returning players, those who appeared on a team’s season-ending or playoff roster, or who have played in 25 or more professional games, make a minimum of $660.
Salaries are paid by the ECHL franchises.
For those on NHL/AHL two-way contracts (more on that below), those players are paid their full salary from the parent organization. The ECHL team then reimburses the higher club $525 per week, which counts against the ECHL cap.
The $525 is the standard rate, but can be as much as $625. Any amount over the higher figure is considered a cap violation. This includes money for things like equipment and travel.
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Rosters/players
DOUBLE-A: Teams are allowed to have 28 active players with no restrictions on veteran/experienced players. (This second part matters in the ECHL.)
Rosters have no positional limits, either, but it’s not uncommon for them to be split between 14 pitchers and 14 positional players to make sure every starter has a backup.
Like Triple-A — and the rest of a franchise’s minor-league system — Double-A players are controlled exclusively by the parent club.
ECHL: Teams can carry 20 players — 21 for the first 30 days of the regular season —on their active rosters. Two of those 20 (or 21), however, must be goaltenders. Teams cannot play with only one dressed goalie.
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Rosters can be made up of NHL prospects and on those on ECHL-only contracts. There is no limit to how many of each. For the Goatheads, players are scouted and signed or assigned through a collaboration between coach Zack Stortini and members of the Avalanche’s front office.
But unlike Minor League Baseball, the ECHL only allows four veteran players per team during the regular season and playoffs. That includes those between the active roster and on the injured list.
So, what is considered a veteran player?
It’s someone who has played at least 260 regular-season games of professional hockey prior to the start of the current season.
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There are exceptions to the veteran designation. Being a goaltender is one. The other is any player signed to an NHL or AHL contract, and has an ECHL assignment clause.
If that is not written into that player’s NHL or AHL contract, he is 24 years or older and has played in 260 regular-season games, the player goes against the veteran limit.
There’s also the matter of what constitutes 260 regular-season professional games?
According to the ECHL, a professional game is one played in any North American league at the double-a level — past or present (currently the ECHL) — or higher (NHL or AHL), or in any of the top European leagues. Those in Russia, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Switzerland count towards the 260-game thershold.
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It is worth noting as well, that some ECHL players aren’t fully controlled by the parent club (more on that below).
Promotions/demotions
DOUBLE-A: Like everything else, a player’s movement is handled by the MLB organization. And the parent club can move a player — whether a prospect or minor-league signee — freely throughout its farm system, from Single-A to Triple-A.
If a player is on an MLB 40-man roster, he can be optioned between the big leagues and minors a maximum of five times per season. Usually, the player would go to Triple-A and from there, an organization can decide on another assignment.
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There are no limits to how many times a player can be moved up or down once he is back within the minor-league system.
ECHL: This depends on the player contract.
As mentioned above, players can either be on ECHL-only or two-way deals.
Prospects signed to either an NHL or AHL franchise can be assigned to an ECHL team for development and recalled at any time. NHL teams — the Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers and Utah Mammoth — without an ECHL affiliate can still lend players to an independent franchise in the third-tier league.
Players on ECHL-only contracts are not controlled by NHL organizations and have to play their way to a promotion. Usually that means through a professional tryout (PTO).
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Unlike with prospects contracted to NHL franchises, ECHL-only players can sign a PTO with any AHL team.
The AHL uses PTOs to fill roster spots for those who have been called up to the NHL or are injured. PTOs last for a maximum of 25 games or until the injured or promoted player returns. From there, the AHL team can either send the PTO player back to the ECHL or sign him to a permanent contract.
A player sent down and looking to get back to the AHL would need to earn another PTO.
Demotion is a different issue. Players in the ECHL can’t be sent down a level like in Minor League Baseball. There isn’t another in the NHL pyramid. The only place left would mean being released.
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David Glovach covers New Mexico United and other sports for the Journal. Reach him at dglovach@abqjournal.com or via X @DavidGlovach.
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