As the third tier of professional hockey in North America, the ECHL is known for its fast-paced action and passionate fan bases, making it an all-around thrilling league to follow. One of the most exciting aspects of minor league hockey games is the celebration of goals, and nothing amplifies the excitement of scoring quite like a loud and emphatic goal horn. Many of the horns used by the ECHL’s 30 member teams are inspired by or used directly from trains and ships, creating unique atmospheres across the league. But five of these horns truly stand out above the rest…

1. Wheeling

The Nailers’ biggest claim to fame is their ear-splitting goal horn. The loudest in the ECHL, the horn is a Kahlenberg T3 and is mounted to the wall in the south end of the arena. It’s played after every goal, of course, as well as after a home team win and during player introductions.

2. Toledo

In 2011, the Walleye’s unique goal horn was salvaged directly from the SS Col. James M. Schoonmaker, a heavy-duty Great Lakes freighter that’s now a museum ship docked in Toledo. The ship was known as “the world’s largest bulk freighter” and featured two Leslie 300 Tyfon horns, one of which was converted from steam to air by boilermakers at the local shipyard and installed inside Huntington Center.

3. Fort Wayne

Like most of their ECHL peers, the Komets feature a Kahlenberg train horn. A bit of a nod to the region’s railroad history, the siren is certainly one of the more deafening horns in the league.

4. Florida

The southernmost team in the league, the Everblades skate just a few miles from the sandy beaches of the Emerald Coast. Appropriately, their goal horn is a repurposed yacht horn and is more high-pitched than some of the pneumatic train and boat horns in use in the ECHL.

5. Savannah

One of the newer entries into the league, Savannah went all out on sourcing a one-of-a-kind horn that is emblematic of the city’s status as a major East Coast port. That’s why an old cargo ship horn has been hung in the rafters of Enmarket Arena to celebrate goals and victories by the Ghost Pirates.