Cooperalls

Brand of ice hockey equipment

Cooperalls were a brand of ice hockey equipment manufactured by Cooper Canada. The name has since become a generic term for all hockey pants featuring a waist to ankle outer shell and the basic design remains popular in the sports of ringette and broomball but not ice hockey.

Cooperalls were designed by Brian Heaton, the senior designer for Cooper Canada from 1972 to 1975 and were used in ice hockey, ringette, and broomball. Promoted as "a complete hockey uniform system" it consisted of an elasticated girdle extending from the middle of the rib cage to the top of the knees, worn beneath a tracksuit style woven nylon outer shell covering waist to ankle. The girdle had pockets in to which lightweight, compression moulded foam pads were placed and the close fitting nature of the garment ensured that the pads always stayed in contact with the areas of the body they were designed to protect. This replaced the traditional combination of short hockey pants and socks, and Cooper claimed that when combined with their own brand of extra light shin guards, shoulder pads and gloves the system weighed 40% less than a conventional uniform. As well as being considerably lighter, the system offered players greater freedom of movement and improved hip, pelvis and thigh protection. A short legged outer shell, called the "Cooperall Coupé" (from the French past participle coupé, to cut) was also available for traditionalists. The long pant was first adopted by the Ontario Hockey League in the late 1970s and was tested in training camps by a number of National Hockey League teams, including the Winnipeg Jets and the Quebec Nordiques.

A similar style of girdle and long pant, called the "Propac", was manufactured by CCM.

Today, players in the sports of ringette and broomball still wear ankle length sports pants whose designs were inspired by the original design of Cooperalls and can be seen widely used across both sports including at major international events. Ringette players however also wear ice hockey skates while broomball players do not use ice skates of any kind.