These are probably one of the most protective pants on the market. The thigh , hip and kidney areas are lined with pro level protection. The spine protector is reinforced with a thick plastic cover and the tailbone protection which is also reinforced bends right around and under to give you complete coverage. The pant itself is fairly streamlined as well and doesn't have a bulkly feel to them. The fit is slightly tighter than what I'm use to(coming from a looser fitting Easton pant) but nothing I can't adjust to. I really like being able to adjust the width on the thigh padding but you can't adjust the the length like in the previous top of the line 9K version. This pant is a lot lighter than the 9K however which was a common complaint about it. The heavy duty thigh padding also wraps around the leg and leaves very little unprotected area on the inside of the leg like you have on a lot of other brands or lower end pants. This pant is nicely ventilated and really like the abrastion zones on the outside of the legs. They are a higher density nylon weave that resist pant burn when you rub up against the boards on a check. I think RBK have done a really nice job on these pants and I highly recommend them for every level of hockey, all the way up to pro level.