From the ECHL to the NHL: How Development Paths Take Shape

Player development is rarely linear.

Not every NHL career follows a direct or predictable path. For many players and coaches, development is shaped by opportunity, workload and experience gained at different levels of professional hockey. The ECHL has played a role in that process for decades, serving as a league where players and coaches gain responsibility and build professional habits.

Over time, players who spent part of their careers in the ECHL have gone on to appear in NHL games, including with the Colorado Avalanche. Each path has been different, but the league has consistently been part of the broader development landscape.

The ECHL’s Role in Professional Growth

The ECHL provides consistent playing opportunities.

Players are regularly asked to handle full workloads and meaningful roles. Goaltenders often start the majority of games. Skaters are expected to contribute in all situations, including special teams and late-game scenarios. The schedule and travel mirror the demands of higher levels of professional hockey.

Those conditions help players gain experience that can translate upward. Some players begin their professional careers in the ECHL. Others use time in the league to develop, adjust or remain game-ready while pursuing opportunities at higher levels.

There is no single development model, but experience remains a common factor.

Scott Wedgewood: Gaining Experience Early

One example is Scott Wedgewood.

Early in his professional career, Wedgewood spent a full season in the ECHL and served as a regular starter. The role required him to manage a consistent workload and the demands of a full professional season.

That experience became part of a longer career that later included NHL appearances, including time with the Colorado Avalanche. His path reflects how extended playing time at the ECHL level can factor into a player’s development over time.

Development Beyond Players: Jared Bednar

The ECHL’s influence is not limited to players.

Jared Bednar, head coach of the Colorado Avalanche, spent significant time in the league as both a player and a coach. In 2020, he was inducted into the ECHL Hall of Fame.

Bednar is one of six individuals to have his name engraved on the Kelly Cup three times. He won championships as a player with South Carolina in 1997 and 2001 and later as head coach of the Stingrays in 2009.

He later coached the Lake Erie Monsters to a Calder Cup championship in 2016 before winning the Stanley Cup as head coach of the Avalanche. Bednar is the first coach to win a Kelly Cup, Calder Cup and Stanley Cup.

He is also the second former ECHL coach to lead a team to a Stanley Cup title, joining former Wheeling Nailers head coach Peter Laviolette, who led Carolina to the 2006 championship.

His career illustrates how experience gained in the ECHL can extend beyond playing roles and into leadership positions at the highest level.

A New Chapter in New Mexico

As professional hockey returns to New Mexico, that same league environment will be part of the landscape.

With the launch of the New Mexico Goatheads, the ECHL will again serve as a place where players compete for roles, manage professional workloads and pursue advancement within the sport.

The league remains one part of a larger system. For players and coaches, it is a place to gain experience and continue their careers.

Season Tickets

Season tickets for the New Mexico Goatheads’ inaugural season are now available. Fans interested in securing seats for the return of professional hockey to New Mexico can learn more and place deposits through the team’s ticket office.