I have now made multiple videos on finding my “perfect” chest protector journey… of which I have spent FAR too much money doing so including buying a fully custom Kenesky PP1 that was nothing but a complete let down and disappointment. While I loved my original Brown Russian Spec chest protector, it was so hot and heavy playing 3 games in a single night was basically impossible. So I went down a path of trying to find a chest that was protective enough while not being ridiculously heavy… which eventually lead me to this Warrior (affiliate link) Ritual X4 Pro+ chest and arm protector.
Warrior (affiliate link) units have been praised online for a while for being very protective (albeit bulky) while offering decent mobility because of the Robo like arms. I spoke to people at Warrior about this chest, and specifically asked about their pro goalies in Europe, that often have more demanding standards than North American pros because of the more constrained equipment budgets. Often Euro goalies require more beefed chests from the get go since they require a unit to last longer since they can’t simply just order a new one whenever they want like NHL goalies more or less can. Warrior’s response impressed me and I decided to take the plunge into buying their newest offering of chest protection, which was this X4 Pro+.
I realize at the time of publishing this review, Warrior (affiliate link) is about to release the X5 line of protective gear, so this review is basically out of date. I am trying to get my hands on the X5 lines when they come out to do a comparison so this review will hopefully still stand up and can give insight on their newest model. I wanted to be 100% certain on a chest review, since retail customers expect these to last for YEARS and in my experience it sometimes takes a while to start to see the foams break down for protection or to find the small gaps from the tricky shots. Watch the full review of the Warrior Ritual X4 Pro+ hockey goalie chest and arm protector on YouTube and below!
My favourite part of the Warrior (affiliate link) Ritual X4 Pro+ chest protector is what I call the Robo arms, which has been changed over the years from the exposed plastic model that shocked the goalie world to this more traditional looking design, but acts in a fairly unique way. These arms have been more protective than my CCM NHL AB Pro and Brown Russian Spec chest protectors… which is very impressive! Mobility on these arms is VERY good and from my experience the only arms that are better than these for mobility is the Bauer Supreme arms… but those have such terrible durability and stitching issues which you shouldn’t find here.
I am also glad I took my time to do this review, because it wasn’t until this season where I noticed a gap in the shoulder floaters and arm attachment that can have pucks sneak under the harder and rounded foam cap. While this isn’t a major issue and happens very rarely, it is a spot I would like to see improved in future models by just ensuring these 2 caps don’t separate as much as they can, or adding another cap of foam between them for more of an accordion effect. Overall the protection on this chest is solid, it isn’t as beefy as the CCM or Brown on the body or floaters, but if you wear a solid padded neck and clavicle guard like a Kova you will have more than enough protection on the shoulders and floaters. The only area I would really like to see Warrior beef up is the side rib protection, as RVH shots could be more padded and I have felt a few that I wouldn’t have in the Brown or CCM.
The Warrior Ritual X4 Pro+ chest is also MASSIVE and has huge coverage, which can be seen in the below photos.
I have heard people online complain how hot the Warrior chest protectors are, and as someone that has documented my overheating and sweating issues while playing goalie (and have the videos of the different base layers trying to fix this) I am happy to report that this chest performed very well in this regards. It breathes relatively well, the back plate has Polygiene and their yellow liner material (used to be called Silver Shield) that can be seen on their player gloves. This material never feels like it gets soaked like the nylon backing and I wish they included it more on this chest and specifically in the arms. Even while wearing this chest tucked, it never felt like heat was getting trapped inside it. Warrior could perhaps improve on this though and go down the route CCM has tried with Aer-Tec, but overall I can’t complain and am happy to report it breathes better than my Brown, CCM, and Kenesky units I have worn in the past.
This Warrior X4 Pro+ chest and arm protector is also ridiculously light for what it is. When I put this in my bag vs my CCM pro stock unit, it feels like I am forgetting something with how light the chest is. Which is another reason why I am not really bothered with feeling a few more shots than in the CCM unit, the tradeoff for more lightweight design done here is that extra protection.
Overall I am very satisfied with the Warrior X4 Pro+ chest and arm protector, while it isn’t perfect, it is very solid and I am happy I bought it to try it out. If this review and content was helping in you deciding to buy Warrior gear, please let Warrior know through social media that Hockey Reviews content helped you make a purchase!
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