Hockey History: What were Cooperalls, and Why Were They Banned?
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Time to read 5 min
As a dedicated hockey equipment store, The Hockey Shop enjoys delving into the history of hockey gear— and examining what stood the test of time and what may have fell short. Today, we’ll be taking a look at Cooperalls, why they were made, what made them popular… and why we probably won’t be seeing them make a comeback anytime soon.
Preview Image: from NHL.com
What Were Cooperalls?
History and Use
Cooperalls were full-length hockey pants developed by Cooper Canada in the 70s. Although other companies also started making their own renditions of these protective pants, including CCM with their relatively popular “Propac,” the generalized term for the gear continued to be “Cooperalls.” Sometime after their creation, players across many different ice sports moved over to using Cooperalls, including not just hockey, but also ringette and broomball.
The big selling point of the Cooperalls was its all-in-one, “complete hockey uniform system” design; there was no need to wrestle socks over shin pads, they included padding from waist to ankle, and they compressed the pads tight enough to the body that your equipment wouldn’t move. Pockets in the design held compression-molded foam padding for a close fit and to offer protection to the wearer. Cooper Canada suggested that using the pants with their other protectives (shin guards, shoulder pads, and gloves) would drop overall weight by about 40%, which seemed like a pretty good perk.
The bulk of their popularity started in kid’s hockey, and they continued further to be used in other leagues, eventually even the NHL. They were first seen in the 1970s in the OHL, and wearing them there and in other Junior leagues such as the WHL was required due to their sponsorship with Cooper. The Philadelphia Flyers are coined with being the first—and only team for quite a while too—to wear them in the NHL during the 1981-82 season, followed by the Hartford Whalers. On Dec 11, 1982, the match-up between the Flyers and Whalers would be dubbed “The Cooperall Game,” with both teams adorning the garment.
Despite having what seemed like a solid foundation and objective, they didn’t last very long in hockey fashion.
Safety Concerns and Issues
Although Cooperalls came with the promise of making the game safer, it kind of had the opposite effect. The biggest issue had to do with how the material reacted to the ice surface— the nylon on the shell lacked enough friction to stop players safely and efficiently if they happened to fall and slide on the ice. Some players claimed that you could even gain speed if you slipped with Cooperalls on.
Another issue that came with the Cooperalls was, despite the built-in protection, it did very little to cover other areas, mainly in the back and tailbone. What was built in was also not always adequate, making players more prone to injury than before.
Some players on the Philadelphia Flyers during the few years they wore Cooperalls expressed how difficult it was to get used to them, even citing that they would get sore after practices or games due to how restricting they felt on the stride. Many opted to cut the backs of the girdle and other inside parts to increase the mobility of the design. They were a bit more comfortable to wear and move in afterwards, but of course, still more restricting—and now covering less—than the traditional hockey pants and shin guards combo.
Philadelphia Flyers in Cooperalls; Source
Reception and Debate
Understandably, Cooperalls received many mixed reviews from players and spectators alike, although the main issue actually being how they look. Lots of people didn't like the visual style; on the other hand, there were those who liked the “taller look” they gave. Some advocated keeping them in the NHL for this reason, though very few specific players would admit publicly if they liked wearing them.
However, the NHL's ban didn't signify that they would disappear overnight. Cooper would still promote their Cooperalls, which would continue to make appearances in Junior and younger leagues even three years after the ban.
One argument that's come up is that technology is likely far enough along to make a material that can fix the Cooperalls' safety concerns. While that may be a possibility, you would need to get others on board with the pants before companies revisit the Cooperall days. When the NHL banned them, CCM and Cooper took a pretty decent hit— but still, many players were floored to be going back to the traditional style they knew and loved. If persuading people to change their pant style was tough back then, it'll be even harder now, unless a design comes along that vastly outperforms the current options.
Philadelphia Flyers in Reverse Retro uniforms and Cooperalls, from NHL on X: Source
Legacy
Cooperalls may have fallen out of favor in hockey, but ankle-length sports pants still remain popular in various other ice sports like ringette and broomball. The pants they use aren’t exactly Cooperalls, but they are based on the original design and are commonplace in both sports, even at the international level.
With the way hockey has evolved, specifically with the off-balance positions players find themselves in and the amount of stretch they need on their stride, there is an extremely low chance these pants will be revisited. Barber described how it felt when a player found themselves falling on the ice, which was that “You didn’t have any grab on the ice. You picked up speed, not slowed down,” which would be very dangerous in today’s game. Hockey has gotten much faster and requires every millisecond; a change in what the players can anticipate (i.e. someone falling and being unable to get back up again) could become unsafe and lead to major injury.
Philadelphia Flyers in Reverse Retro uniforms and Cooperalls, from NHL on X: Source
Another difference between the game back then versus now is that hockey players are much more inclined to block shots. If Cooperalls were still in use, blocking shots would be much more ineffective and potentially more dangerous. Movement, stride, and flexibility are already hindered with long pants, so getting to a good position to block a shot will also be difficult. Then there are the safety hazards— we already know falling on the ice is hard to recover from with Cooperalls, and the pants just can’t hold enough padding underneath to accommodate a shot from the puck while still allowing for room to move.
It’s kind of neat to see Cooperalls in old photos— and the Flyers even brought them back as part of their Reverse Retro uniforms— but it’s still highly unlikely we’ll be seeing them back in the game sometime in the future.
Further Reading
“A Brief History of Cooperalls - From the Broad Street Bullies to Brass Bonanza.” Third String Goalie, 9 Oct 2011. Source Link .
“Cooperalls.” Wikipedia Foundation, 23 Dec 2023. Source Link .
Kimelman, Adam. “Cooperalls made Flyers ‘look bigger.’” Philadelphia Flyers. Source Link .
Kimelman, Adam. “Flyers bringing back Cooperall pants for warmups on Reverse Retro night.” Source Link .
Piercy, Justin. “The All-Cooperalls Game: 32 years later.” Sportsnet, 11 Dec 2014. Source Link .
RIHHOF. “Remembering When the Friars Wore ‘Cooperalls.’” Rhode Island Hockey Hall of Fame. Source Link .
Rosenhek, Eric. “The Death of the Cooperall.” The Good Point, 12 May 2009. Source Link .
“What Happened to NHL’s Most Bizarre Look?” Youtube, uploaded by idontgivetkachuk, 29 Oct 2022. Source Link .
