A slight decrease in suspensions and fines for illegal hits suggests that players now have a better understanding of what lines can’t be crossed.

Through 478 games, the Department of Player Safety has handed down seven suspensions for 18 games and fined two players. At the same point last season, eight suspensions (18 games) and six fines were assessed.

“Guys know now what we are looking for,” NHL Senior Vice President of Player Safety Stephane Quintal told USA TODAY Sports. “We’ve spent a lot of time meeting with teams, and with players, explaining the illegal check to the head rule.”

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Quintal, who replaced Brendan Shanahan in 2014, said he isn’t seeing many intentional acts that need to be punished.

“The suspensions we have now are because a guy takes a bad angle of approach,” Quintal said. “The game is so fast now sometimes a guy doesn’t have time to react. There are a few retaliations, but the intentional retaliation I don’t see anymore. “

Quintal said his department has been proactive in curtailing suspensions, going so far as notifying teams if league officials believe a player is flirting with potential trouble, even if he hasn’t cross the line yet.

“We tell general managers, ‘We reviewed this play and this play and you should talk to your players about this and that,'” Quintal said. “General managers appreciate that. We are trying to continue what Brendan did in the past (with player education).”

This season Quintal is also encouraging players to be extra cautious about putting themselves in vulnerable positions.

“They are turning their back on the boards because they know that if the player sees the number he’s not supposed to hit,” Quintal said. “But if you do it just before he gets there, it’s impossible to stop. So we are trying to educate players to make sure they don’t turn their back.”

A former NHL defenseman, Quintal is particularly worried about defenseman leaving themselves vulnerable when they are retrieving the puck in their zone.

“Now (an attacking player) can dump the puck at the red line and no one is going to touch him until he hits that defenseman,” Quintal said. “It’s a hard position for a defenseman now. You see guys like Erik Karlsson, Drew Doughty, Duncan Keith and P.K. Subban are letting (the forechecker) go in first and then they take the puck from him. But some of the young defenseman, are turning their back and not keeping their head up. That’s where I want to do more work.”