1975–76 Calgary Cowboys season



The 1975–76 Calgary Cowboys season was the 4th season of the Blazers franchise in the World Hockey Association (WHA) and 1st in Calgary, Alberta. The Vancouver Blazers relocated to Calgary prior to the season. The Cowboys finished 3rd in the Canadian Division and lost in the Semi-finals to the Winnipeg Jets 4 games to 1.

Off-season
The Cowboys inaugural jersey colours were red and white with a primarily white home jersey and a primarily red jersey. They'd stay with these colours throughout the club's existence. Three stripes were placed on the arms and five stripes on the body. The numbers and names were not outlined. The logo was a white cowboy hat, smaller versions were on the shoulders. This jersey design remained unchanged throughout the Cowboys two year stint in the WHA.

Regular Season
In their first season, the Cowboys were not expected to ice a strong team, having inherited a franchise that finished in a last place tie with the Oilers the previous year. Calgary finished 41–35–4 however, as a 44-goal season by Danny Lawson and 42 goals from Ron Chipperfield helped the Cowboys finish a surprising third in the Canadian division.

Don McLeod set the WHA record for assists in a season by a goalie with 13. Grant Fuhr of the NHL's 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers had 14 assists.

Playoffs
In the playoffs, the Cowboys met the Quebec Nordiques in the Quarter-finals. The series is best known for one of hockey's most legendary brawls. The incident began when Calgary's Rick Jodzio cross-checked Quebec's Marc Tardif in the head, causing both teams to leave their benches. The brawl lasted 20 minutes and ended only when Quebec police gathered at the players benches and escorted the teams back to their dressing rooms. The game resumed following a 20 minute break to allow both teams to cool down, then resumed without eleven players, who were ejected from the game. The incident caught the attention of Quebec's Solicitor General Francois Lalonde, who had the incident investigated as a criminal matter. Jodzio was suspended indefinitely by the league, and later plead guilty in a Quebec court to a charge of assault. Cowboys coach Joe Crozier was suspended for the rest of the series.

Calgary went on to defeat the Nordiques, who had finished 18 points ahead of Calgary in the regular season, but were defeated by the Winnipeg Jets in the Semi-finals. The team never really captured the attention of Calgarians, as fewer than 5,000 fans, on average, attended playoff games against the Jets.

Player Stats
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals

MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts

Awards and Records

 * The Cowboys did not win any awards this season.