I have always found that the clear plastic throat guards bother me. I went on to wearing just a Kevlar neck guard, but it really didn't do a lot of good the one time I did get hit in the neck. Fortunately for me the guy couldn't shoot too hard.

I'm going back to wearing the clear plastic one (probably with a kevlar neck guard) since my new Battram Upper Body pads leave a fair bit of room open in the neck. I'm using leather strings on the sides and front to keep it from getting in my face when I look down. Hopefully it won't bother me as much this time.

I remember watching Mario Gosslin play for the Quebec Nordiques years back. In the middle of the game he got hit in the wide open neck with a slapshot. He dropped to the ice unconsious. They rushed him to the hospital and he was fine, but I never did see him play in the NHL after that. I'm wondering if he lost his nerve.