After years of flying under the radar, Kansas City’s pro hockey team is skating into the spotlight, stacking playoff runs, NHL partnerships and a fan experience that keeps getting louder

For years, the Kansas City Mavericks were the “best-kept secret in Kansas City,” according to Mavericks Chief Operating Officer James Arkell.

Well, it should be secret no more: There is hockey in Kansas City, located right down the road at Cable Dahmer Arena. And it’s not just hockey—it’s high-level professional hockey with an entertaining atmosphere to match.

“Think Savannah Bananas with exciting hockey,” Arkell says. “We are a wonderful fan experience, we are a wonderful family experience, we’re a great choice financially, and the hockey speaks for itself.”

After seven years straight without advancing past the first round of the ECHL playoffs, the Mavericks have turned it around the past two seasons. The team earned a divisional title in 2023-24 and advanced to the Kelly Cup, the best postseason finish in the organization’s 17-year history. Last season, the Mavs sat atop the Mountain Division once again, qualifying to the Western Conference finals for the second straight year.

The Mavs seem poised for another deep run in 2025-26, led by general manager and head coach Tad O’Had, the winningest coach in Kansas City professional hockey history. Through 19 games played, the Mavericks hold the highest win percentage in the Mountain Division.

“Our ownership has allowed us to really place a big emphasis on retention of our players,” O’Had says. “We’re bringing in the right players and keeping them here in Kansas City. This is one of the premier locations that players want to play. They love the community, they love the support of the fan base, and they know that the organization takes care of them.”

The team’s recent success has been a long time in the making. Loretto Sports Ventures, led by Lamar Hunt, Jr. and Arkell, acquired the team in 2014. It was not until a change in the leadership structure, giving O’Had general manager duties, that the pieces of the puzzle finally began to fit together.

“It allowed me to have control over the players that we sign, over all hockey operations,” O’Had says. “I’ve got great ownership that really supports and backs what I do, and that makes things a lot easier.

If the leadership restructuring put the puzzle together, it was a newfound affiliation with the NHL’s Seattle Kraken and their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, in 2022 that framed the puzzle and put it on the mantle.

“They’ve done wonders for us,” Arkell says. “It’s a real partnership. You don’t always see that when you’re in the lower league, but they treat our team as equals and they give us great players.”

O’Had focuses his recruitment of players with a two-pronged approach: He wants his team to play a fast-paced game, and he wants his guys to be just as good off the ice as they are on it.

“They do a phenomenal job of bringing in high-character guys,” second-year forward Jackson Berezowski says. “That just lays a good foundation for the culture. The guys love coming to the rink, they love seeing each other, and that’s important come June, when we can hopefully make a long playoff run.”

As the Mavericks have elevated the level of play inside the rink, the team’s front office has elevated alongside them. This past season, the team was nominated for five ECHL team awards, including Community Service Team of the Year and Game Operations Team of the Year.

The team makes game days exciting for fans of all ages and all levels of hockey fandom. From promotional games like Star Wars night and the Teddy Bear toss to recurring events like Chuck-A-Puck, they look to provide a game-day atmosphere like no other. And for good reason: They know that when Cable Dahmer is rowdy and rocking, the team feeds off of it.

“There’s nothing better than having a couple thousand fans screaming your name and your team colors,” Berezowski says. “We play for those nights that are sold out and the barn is rocking.”

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