Allen: Raffi Torres' suspension shows NHL won't tolerate his brand of violence

When the NHL handed down a 41-game suspension to San Jose Sharks forward Raffi Torres it was more about his pattern of unnecessary violence than his latest illegal check to the head against Anaheim's Jakob Silfverberg.

This was the fifth time Torres was suspended, and that earned him the second-longest suspension in NHL history. He has also been fined three times and warned twice for undesirable hits. Torres will lose more than $440,000 in wages, but not many around the NHL are feeling much sympathy for him. He was out of chances, and he should have known that his next brush with supplemental discipline was going to cost him dearly.

Everyone else in the hockey world knew that. This had to be an easy decision for the NHL Department of Player Safety. Torres had previously received a 21-game suspension, and he has long owned a reputation for living on the edge of the rule book. Rules need consequences to be effective, and this suspension establishes a precedent that habitual offenders will be treated harshly.

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It can be a fine line between playing an aggressive, physical style that earns you praise around the NHL and being a player whose brand of violence always lands him trouble. Some players straddle the line when it comes to physical play. But Torres has been way over the line on too many occasions.

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Torres supporters would argue that Torres' physical style is what keeps him in the league. But there are many physical players around the NHL who play that game and never receive a call from the NHL Player Safety Department about their hits.

Most of the players around the league know where the line is that shouldn't be crossed. Torres is clearly unfamiliar with it.

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It's a privilege to play in the NHL, and Torres has squandered that privilege for half of the 2015-16 season because he couldn't play within the rules. This comes at a time when more than 100 veterans who were in the NHL last season don't have contracts because teams are going with younger players.

The length of this suspension sends a message that players with a history of reckless play will pay a heavy price. If this doesn't force Torres to change his style, then nothing will.

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