Unable to establish a strong fan base in Vancouver, the team was moved again in 1975 to become the Calgary Cowboys.

Originally the team, called the Miami Screaming Eagles, was to be based in Miami, Florida, but due to financial problems and a lack of a suitable arena, the franchise was moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and debuted as the Philadelphia Blazers.

Pattison knew that in order to compete with the Vancouver Canucks of the NHL, who shared the same arena, he needed to attract a major star to the team, as Andre Lacroix, who had led the league in scoring the previous year, left to join the New York Golden Blades, while the team's (and league's) highest-paid player, Derek Sanderson, had been forced out at the end of the season in a major embarrassment to the team and league.

The team performed poorly in their first year, finishing with a record of 27-50-1; despite this, Vancouver was such a strong hockey town that the Blazers actually led the WHA in attendance, drawing 9,356 a night, more than 50% above the average of the other eleven clubs in the league.

The Blazers' (and WHA's) efforts to attract fans were certainly not helped by the machinations of the NHL, which was aggressively expanding to try and keep its rival out of premium arenas and markets.