Jacob Trouba Suspended Two Games For Illegal Elbow, Rangers Change Lineup

NHL

By Mollie Walker

Published January 27, 2024, 7:42 p.m. ET

OTTAWA, Ontario – The Rangers will be without captain Jacob Trouba for the next two games.

Trouba was suspended after having a telephone hearing with the NHL's Department of Player Safety on Saturday regarding an elbow he threw against Golden Knights forward Pavel Dorofeyev in the Rangers' 5-2 loss at the Garden on Friday night .

The game was not penalized during the game.

“That’s a big part of our back end,” head coach Peter Laviolette said of the loss of Trouba, who had three goals and 16 assists in 48 games. “His leadership, his defense, his physicality. Plays against other teams' top lines. That's a part that's missing. An opportunity for others to get involved.

“We will certainly miss him tonight [against Ottawa]but he’ll be back in a few games.”

Rangers captain Jacob Trouba was suspended two games for an illegal elbow throw. USA TODAY Sports via Portal Con

As a result, Zac Jones returned to the lineup for the first time since January 20 and just the third time in the last 21 games. Jones lined up alongside Erik Gustafsson, while K'Andre Miller lined up alongside Braden Schneider.

Ryan Lindgren, who left on Friday night in the first half after a hit against the boards by Vegas wing Keegan Kolesar, was considered a game-winning decision on Friday. Although Lindgren went on the ice to warm up, he ultimately didn't play and Connor Mackey got the call.

Mackey replaced Lindgren at left guard for Adam Fox in his Rangers debut, which also counted as his first NHL game since April 13, 2023.

Connor Mackey got the call Saturday after Trouba's suspension. Getty Images

Trouba has been fined twice since joining the Rangers ahead of the 2019-20 season. After being fined $5,000 – the maximum under the collective bargaining agreement – for knocking down then-Blues defenseman Vince Dunn on January 12, 2020, Trouba was suspended on November 25 fined the same for over-tackling the Bruins' Trent Frederic, 2023.

In 2017, with the Jets, Trouba was suspended two games and fined $33,333 for an illegal check to the head of then-Senators forward Mark Stone.

After recording his 28th assist of the season on Friday, Fox surpassed Bill Gadsby to score the ninth-most points among defensemen in Rangers history (271).

The Rangers' All-Star break begins Sunday. While Igor Shesterkin and Vincent Trocheck take part in the NHL's All-Star Weekend activities in Toronto, the rest of the team will have a few days off before returning to training. They begin the final 33 games of the season with two home games against the Avalanche and Lightening on February 5th and 7th, respectively.

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