Warrior Ritual G3 Custom Leg Pad Review

For the last four years, Warrior Hockey has easily been the most innovative company in the goalie industry. They push the limits of intelligence, and while some may consider their tactics farfetched and ridiculous, Warrior is starting to hit the nail dead-square on the head. To them, “innovation is just the means to an end: best in class performance.” Warrior’s continued efforts to innovate their Ritual series has resulted in a true market-share contender: The Ritual G3.

Warrior’s Ritual series has always been different. There isn’t a better way to describe it. Many questions have been asked, over the years, and have all been answered. To really appreciate the innovations Warrior has made, you have to be open minded about the new direction that goalie gear is going. The Ritual leg pads have always been developed with weight and structural purpose in mind, even if they go against the status quo.

Because of Ritual G2, the first thing about the G3’s that goalies will be interested in is the weight. At a size of 34”+1.5”, the Ritual G3 weighs 4.20 lbs.; the G3 will rival a couple other pads in 2016 for lightest pad. The lightweight design of the G3’s is the focal point of the entire pad, and is partnered with many features to make it both structurally sound and responsive.

Without even touching the pad, you can see that the Ritual G3 is a very square pad, which is both aesthetically pleasing and gives off the idea that it takes up as much space possible on the ice. The boot of the pad has—practically—no taper, so your butterfly is entirely sealed from toe to toe. Moving upwards, the landing zone is table-top flat for greater stability in the butterfly and make sliding more efficient. To assist in sliding efficiency, the G3 has a completely bindingless design that decreases the friction of the pad on the ice. While the G3, visually, looks like a ‘butterfly’ pad or a stiff, flat-face pad, it is actually quite flexible. The key being, it is flexible in the important areas: the ankle and the knee. These two breaks give the pad a more ergonomic shape, and give the goalie a greater range of motion at the ankle.

Flipping the pad over, we get to the back of the pad. Continued on from the G2’s, the G3’s features the Profile Lock. The Profile Lock allows the goaltender to adjust the curve of the pad’s thigh rise, to make them suitable for both narrow and wide butterflies. One of the areas that Warrior pads excel in is the knee lock. Warrior refers to theirs as the Knee Drive System (KDS). The wide open design of the KDS allows for unrestricted rotation, when dropping into the butterfly. The knee stack has a solid attachment point made of angular HD foam, to ensure that the goalie’s weight (knee) is not directly up against the leg channel. This design allows the knee to stabilize the butterfly, and ensure there is no over or under rotation of the pad. The openness of the KDS provides ample room, and is specifically designed for the Ritual G3 knee pad. The Ritual G3 knee pad is included with the purchase of these pads.

Warrior has built off the Velcro strapping from the Ritual G2, with new Sling Wrap Straps. The new strapping features two Velcro straps, one for the calf and one for the knee. The calf strap is wider, to act as two calf straps; while the knee strap is combined with a buckle/clip strap to secure the knee in place. The security of the leg channel is quite noticeable on the G3’s. The leg channel is constructed with HD/LD foams, which increases the snug wrap around the goalie’s leg, as well as making it protective from any side shots or skate blades.

To secure your foot in the pad, the Ritual G3 continues on with Warrior’s Active Response straps. The elastic toe and heel straps keep the pad in a secure position on your leg, but also let your foot move naturally in the butterfly and reduce stress on your ankles and knees.