tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post7151593862310753249..comments2024-03-18T13:50:11.722-05:00Comments on Third String Goalie: A Brief History of Cooperalls - From the Broad Street Bullies to Brass Bonanzaspyboy1http://www.blogger.com/profile/17209364157144832648noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-30325418746196421732020-08-20T15:04:19.858-05:002020-08-20T15:04:19.858-05:00I wore Cooperalls for 2 full seasons of Senior A h...I wore Cooperalls for 2 full seasons of Senior A hockey in Minnesota from 81-82 and 82-83. Then I quit playing for 35 years and packed the girdle and shell. I started playing again in 2019 and opened the box to find my Cooperalls (and girdle) in perfect condition. I now wear them about once a month. Of course the young guys have no idea what Im wearing.. They ask if they are ski pants. <br />I never found them to be too hot. The real issue is the girdle. It gets slimy and is very difficult to dry out. Its a real bitch if you wear them every day. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-16453717695349270552016-11-14T09:28:36.976-06:002016-11-14T09:28:36.976-06:00I remember wearing the CCM version of these pants ...I remember wearing the CCM version of these pants back in the 80's! I distinctly remember mine had two sections connected with a zipper just above the knee. It came in handy when the long pants fell out of style; the bottoms just zipped off and basically became a typical short shell.<br />Kirkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09040699461124391869noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-62322181082680411232016-06-18T22:44:12.003-05:002016-06-18T22:44:12.003-05:00Parents loved the Cooperall system for youngsters....Parents loved the Cooperall system for youngsters. All they had to do was pull the pants over the girdle and shinpads; no need for a garter to hook up the socks. The thing is, kids want to look like the pros, and when the NHL essentially outlawed the long pants, kids wanted to look like the pros, not like...er..."kids." That's too bad. As a rec player, I wear a roller hockey girdle with an Adidas nylon unlined long shell warmup pant. It's less to mess with. If I played competitively, I'd dress in whatever way the rest of the team went.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-79416960603102559762012-03-22T21:57:05.683-05:002012-03-22T21:57:05.683-05:00they looked bad and argueing to bring them back is...they looked bad and argueing to bring them back is a bad idea. leave the cool colourful look of socks alone! geez...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-85724554707960611322011-10-10T22:39:55.819-05:002011-10-10T22:39:55.819-05:00I loved the fit of the girdle and the flexibility ...I loved the fit of the girdle and the flexibility to just purchase a shell to match the team colors. I will email a photo I have of a Cooperall jersey that shows the shoulder and vertical stripes. It is cut much shorter than a traditional jersey.Harvey Leenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-77942266395963225822011-10-10T21:10:06.294-05:002011-10-10T21:10:06.294-05:00Oh would we love a look at that catalog to see the...Oh would we love a look at that catalog to see the full intended look, including the jerseys.<br /><br />With all the comments about the girdle and pads paired with the long pants we read on various forums while compiling this article, the majority (or at least a vocal minority!) were fans of the fit and protection the girdle offered as well as the option to purchase additional lower priced pants in other colors to suit the multiple teams they were members of without the expense of multiple pairs of traditional hockey pants with the built in pads if they required multiple colors.<br /><br />None of those comments we read ever referred to the vertically striped Cooper jerseys though, which really piques our interest.<br /><br />Meanwhile, we hope you approve of the edits to the original story with the added information about the CCM Pro Guard being the actual brand worn on the ice.spyboy1https://www.blogger.com/profile/17209364157144832648noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-39000990078684762872011-10-10T20:25:49.688-05:002011-10-10T20:25:49.688-05:00Don't have the catalog anymore, but the long p...Don't have the catalog anymore, but the long pants were just a part of the Cooperall 'system'; they were matched to a new jersey design, with vertical stripes that ran up the sides to the armpits, then became large contrasting colors on the sleeves. <br /><br />Completing the total elimination of horizontal stripes was that the new jerseys were truncated at the waist; unlike traditional jerseys with the stripes at the hips, these didn't hang any lower than the average polo shirt. Topped off with the XL7 (a very strange looking, very light weight and thoroughly unprotective helmet), and you had a classic 80's look that's best left to rot in peace. And I'll second the hot comment; some manufacturers resorted to using mesh to allow them to breathe with limited success.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-68647158390301826782011-10-10T18:23:22.797-05:002011-10-10T18:23:22.797-05:00True, "Cooperall" has achieived generici...True, "Cooperall" has achieived genericized brand status. Funny, considering the iconic look wasn't around for more than a couple of seasons.<br /><br />I can't remember what the title CCM used for their product, but one major faux pas I remember was that, unlike the grey of Cooper, the CCM girdle was... "flesh", beige... some colour like that. On my team growing up, the kid with the CCM girdle/pant system was teased mercilessly for having "pink Cooperalls". Needless to say, nobody else was interested in crossing the brand divide.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-76434399272043830222011-10-10T17:54:36.259-05:002011-10-10T17:54:36.259-05:00Thanks to everyone for the information. We've ...Thanks to everyone for the information. We've always heard of the full length hockey pants referred to as "Cooperalls" despite the obvious CCM logos on them and think this is a case of a brand name becoming the widely accepted term for a product, despite not always being technically correct, as in the case of "kleenex" or "xerox machine" even if made by Puffs or Toshiba.spyboy1https://www.blogger.com/profile/17209364157144832648noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-19684236946849640242011-10-10T17:44:00.900-05:002011-10-10T17:44:00.900-05:00Ironically, the "Cooperalls" worn by the...Ironically, the "Cooperalls" worn by the Flyers and Whalers were not made by Cooper but by CCM. I don't know what CCM called their product.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-91277374754046947072011-10-10T09:46:58.657-05:002011-10-10T09:46:58.657-05:00Cooperalls made by CCM? The Flyers wore CCM Pro Gu...Cooperalls made by CCM? The Flyers wore CCM Pro Guard pants that first season. Thus the CCM logo on them. Cooperalls were made by Cooper, a rival company.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6525056977684151005.post-91162399997682674322011-10-10T09:20:21.203-05:002011-10-10T09:20:21.203-05:00A couple of issues,
1 - As you can clearly see i...A couple of issues, <br /><br />1 - As you can clearly see in some of the pics, the Whalers and Flyers did not wear Cooperalls. They wore CCM's version of the girdle and shell equipment "system". Cooperall is a brand name exclusive to Cooper.<br /><br />2 - Later versions of the pants got away from the windbreaker material to a type that was more slide- friendly. The bigger problem remained that the pants still got cut up a lot and looked like crap with slices and big stitch / patch repairs on them. Kinda destroyed the look. It also cost a lot more for new shells than new socks, which happen to be much easier to repair in the first place (no comment on the new RBK socks - I doubt they're so easy to darn.<br /><br />3- the other big issue with the shell system was that they were hot as hell. Players complained about sweating like they were in a sauna in them. For amateurs in cold rinks, a hard shift followed by a seat on the bench could lead to a clammy, gross experience. <br /><br />4) "Cooperalls" were also available in short beezers that you'd wear socks with, just like a regular hockey set-up. Many players wore this, and perhaps still do. It's an older pic, but you can see the girdle peeking out from under Steve Larmer's breezer:<br /><br />http://www.prohockeyfr.com/photogallery/photoshistoire/steve_larmer.jpg<br /><br /><br />5) Brendan Shanahan's London Knights were /are an Ontario Hockey League team, not a WHL team. All the Canadian hockey league teams (OHL, WHL and Quebec Major JHL) wore Cooperalls as part of their cooper sponsorship.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com