Much like shoulder pads and elbow pads, many people actually just go for the cheapest shin guards they can find. You can realistically find all of the most important features in the most basic of shin guards. You'll get solid plastic covering your shin and knee cap. Also, you will get the gap between your shin and the actual plastic of the shin guard. This is a basic feature of all current models of shin guards, in which the plastic protecting the shin is spaced somehow from your actual shin with a bit of air cushion. This will absorb a lot of the shock on contact. A lot of old fashioned hockey players enjoy the cheapest shin guards because they are usually the lightest and least bulky to play with. You'll lose protection (especially around the back of your calves) and you most likely need to rely on tape to hold the shin guards on, however you will have the greatest level of mobility.

It's amazing how prices on shin guards have dropped in recent years. In this price range, you can truly find the best value for shin guards. The average hockey player really enjoys playing in a shin guard in this price range due to the combination of protection and mobility. You will get the perks of solid protection in the front and around your calves, secure straps to hold them on all game, as well as still have the lightness you want. If you're looking for good protection but you are the type of hockey player that hates the bulk of high-end shin guards, these are for you.

In this price range, you begin to reach the shin guards used at the professional level, but not quite yet. These shin guards are really solid and will give you a great amount of protection, more so than the two previous price ranges. You will see slight upgrades here from the shin guards in our "Best Value" price range. Overall, these shin guards will give you more bulk, however what you'll get is a shin guard that'll provide you with more protection, more durability, and will last longer. If you are looking for more protection and security than the average shin guard gives you and you don't want to be back here buying a new pair any time soon, then you should pick a shin guard from this price range.

Here is where we get into the high-end shin guards. These shin guards are designed to give you the maximum amount of protection out of any other available. However, what pushes these shin guards above the "mid-level pricing" group is that these have been built to give you the maximum amount of comfort to go with that added protection. Hockey player using these shin guards want that extra protection the cheaper shin guards just don't provide, and they are willing to pay even a little more in order to get the most comfort out of that added bulk.