Yes, lacrosse players wear chest protectors to prevent injury to their ribs, shoulders, and torso. Chest protectors must meet NOCSAE performance standards to ensure top-notch safety.
Chest protectors come in many sizes, so it might be worth the investment to try different ones on to see which one fits best. If you fall forward in a lacrosse game and land directly on top of your chest protector, you should be protected from any kind of injury as long as it's in place properly. One way to ensure you chest protector fits is making sure the bottom of the chest protector to lines up with the bottom of your sternum directly in the middle of the chest. Similarly, you want to be sure a chest protector also provides adequate protection around the collarbone and is not too loose.
The lacrosse goalie's primary duty is to stop shots, protect the net and deflect potentially damaging shots hence they need extra padding. The extra padding on the gloves protects the inner wrist of a stick-hand so that they can absorb direct shots or deflect damaging shots coming towards them.
The Maverik Max Shoulder pad is the best lacrosse chest protector for those who want protection without sacrificing mobility. The Maverik Max is of the most protective lacrosse chest protectors on the market. Its large, fully adjustable shoulder caps and removable bicep pads provide complete protection while its hard, triangular chest plate sticks out away from your body for increased airflow improving overall breathability.