After New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba was fined the maximum $5,000 for elbowing, Adam Proteau thinks heftier fines would send a stronger message.

The controversial hit New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba laid on Florida Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues during Sunday's Game 3 resulted in a $5,000 fine.

That's the maximum allowable under the collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and NHL Players’ Association without requiring a hearing. That’s just not enough of a punitive measure to deter NHL players who walk the line between legal and illegal hits from pushing the envelope and doing something similar down the road.

A $5,000 fine for NHL players is like a gnat on an elephant’s behind – a minor annoyance that barely registers if it registers at all. 

Trouba has no real deterrent to make him think twice about extending an elbow and driving it into an opponent’s head if he's only fined $5,000 despite being suspended for two games in January for elbowing as well. 

But what kind of fine would be a deterrent? We’re thinking at least five times that amount – $25,000 – would be a good start for fines without a hearing. That’s basically the cost of a decent car or a luxury trip overseas – things that NHLers routinely spend parts of their salaries on. 

That’s the whole point of a fine – you need to hit players where it hurts to compel them from acting in such a manner again. You don’t do that with a $5,000 nick to the wallet.

When then-Rangers forward Sean Avery waved his stick in the face of New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur in 2008, the NHL quickly changed its unsportsmanlike conduct penalty to include a tactic like Avery's. The league knew how bad Avery’s action was, and there were no qualms from the NHLPA to mitigate against it happening again.

While the league and NHLPA must wait until the next CBA in 2026 to change the dollar amounts for fines, the players' association should be working with the league to make a safer work environment in whatever way it can before two years from now.

Somebody has to be the first person to pay a bigger price, and in this instance, Trouba is known to be a competitor who tends to push things as far as he can. It’s time for the league and the NHLPA – you know, the group that’s supposed to create and ensure a safe working environment for its constituents – to start pushing back harder. That means drawing a new line in the sand and putting players on notice that acts like Trouba’s won’t be tolerated from this day on, whether it's with a steeper fine or more suspensions.

Otherwise, what’s the point of these weak fines? To pretend they’re effective enough? The fact headshots keep happening is all the proof you need to see that isn’t the case.

This is not to say the NHL isn’t a safer place to play than it was two or three decades ago – it certainly is. But old habits die hard, and with NHL coaches continually demanding their players “finish” checks, there will almost certainly be more incidents like the Trouba and Rodrigues affair. It doesn’t have to be this way, and there’s clearly more that the league and players’ union can do. It just takes the institutional willpower and leadership from the game’s gatekeepers to move the needle in the proper direction.

Without that improved approach, the “Wild West” element will remain, and reckless behavior will continue to be an issue. Players will cross the line, knowing full well they won’t have to answer for it in any meaningful way. It’s frustrating to see this continue to occur, but that’s exactly what will happen unless there’s a new, forceful reply from the league and NHLPA. 

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