Ahead of the Herd: Franchise approaches 1K ticket deposits, leaving mark early

RIO RANCHO — In September, New Mexico’s newest professional hockey team was introduced to the world.

The “Goatheads” brand was met with thunderous applause inside the Rio Rancho Events Center, comments of all varieties online, along with some fast merchandise sales. Despite the hot start, critics remained skeptical. Will the name and identity stick like the franchise hopes?

Well, now over six weeks later, the numbers aren’t lying.

This week, the New Mexico Goatheads revealed on social media that they have reached 900 season ticket deposits and counting, creeping up on the 1,000 mark.

“New Mexico is no doubt ready for professional hockey,” Goatheads General Manager Jared Johnson said in an online post. “What a feat for our team and community after five short months.”

Quite the feat indeed. In RREC’s last hockey stint, the 2008-09 season with the New Mexico Scorpions, the arena averaged 2,791 fans across their 32-game home schedule. With a little under a year until puck drop for the Goatheads, there is a solid chance the organization meets half that number in season ticket sales alone.

“The basic stats say it’s going to work,” Johnson said at the brand reveal event in September. “When the Scorpions were here, they did about 3,000 fans a game, and Rio Rancho was half the size that it is now, so we’re fully confident.”

In 2008, the population of Rio Rancho was approximately 88,000. In 2025, Rio Rancho’s population is estimated to be around 114,000. More people equals more potential fans, leading to more people filling the seats.

But let’s not take any credit away from the Goathead staff; they didn’t just wait around for fans to come flock with their wallets. In their first few weeks with their identity, the Goatheads have been active on social media, supporting other teams in the area, such as NM United and several Lobo athletic teams.

In addition to opening up season ticket deposits, the franchise has been releasing new merchandise almost every week on its online storefront — storefront that has been seeing apparel fly off the shelves, shipping to 31 different states and several Canadian provinces so far.

Last week’s “Monday Night RAW” at RREC even saw WWE superstar Jey Uso repping the team’s maroon and teal, holding up a jersey backstage.

It has been a dream start for the franchise’s introduction to the Land of Enchantment, but with their on-ice debut still distant, this is just the tip of the goat hoof.