NEW YORK -- Hockey fans of a certain age tend to remember where they were on Aug. 9, 1988, when the Edmonton Oilers traded Wayne Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was working for the NBA 25 years ago and doesnt recall exactly where he was. His most vivid memory came a couple of weeks later when he saw the Aug. 22 Sports Illustrated cover that featured Gretzky and Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson. "Remember thinking at the time that that demonstrated a huge step forward for hockey and its credibility," Bettman told The Canadian Press on Thursday. "It was obviously something that, in the annals of sports, was one of those seminal events that gets a tremendous amount of attention because of its import and impact." Sports Illustrateds cover read, "Great move, Gretzky." At the expense of the Oilers and their fans, it also turned out to be a great move for hockey in the United States, which benefited from expansion and an infusion of players at the youth level. "People paid attention to hockey in places where they might not have focused on it as much, and it was clear there was a great deal of interest in the game," Bettman said. "Waynes presence in L.A. was the catalyst for that." When Gretzky arrived in Los Angeles, The Forum wasnt a loud or intimidating place to play. Sellouts and celebrity appearances became the norm, thanks to the NHLs biggest star. Not long after, Gretzkys impact was felt beyond Los Angeles. The league added a second California team in 1991 with the expansion San Jose Sharks and a third in 1993 with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks. Bettman became commissioner several months before the Mighty Ducks and Florida Panthers debuted and the Minnesota North Stars moved to Dallas and in the midst of the Tampa Bay Lightnings first season. The leagues expansion across the Sunbelt continued under Bettmans watch, due in no small part to the Gretzky trade. "It was the reaction of people to the game," Bettman said of the cause and effect. "Waynes presence in L.A. and the success the Kings had demonstrated that hockey had credibility in so-called newer or non-traditional markets." Gretzky was never able to lead the Kings to a Stanley Cup. In 2012, they became the fifth team in a "non-traditional market" to do so, joining the Stars, Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes and Ducks. Small-market teams arent immune to financial difficulties like what the Oilers dealt with leading to the trade. But no longer can owners get $15 million for a player like Peter Pocklington did from Bruce McNall for Gretzky. And changes to the NHLs business structure have given them increasing ability to compete. "As you see from looking at how the games been played and the playoff races and the regular-season races, we have perhaps the best competitive balance that not only we have ever seen but that any sport has ever seen," Bettman said. "Every team has a chance of making the playoffs, you see that, and playoffs are incredibly not just entertaining but unpredictable." Stitched College Jerseys .J. Ellis hit two-run homers and the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the San Diego Padres 4-0 Saturday night. Cheap College Jerseys Free Shipping . -- The St. Johns IceCaps weathered a wild first period with the help of goaltender Jussi Olkinuora, before finding offensive inroads in the second. http://www.cheapncaajerseysfastshipping.com/ . -- Gus Malzahn finally had his day in Fayetteville. Wholesale NCAA Football Jerseys . U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield in Manhattan agreed that lawyers on both sides could make their formal requests by Nov. 8. A hearing is scheduled for a day earlier. Jordan Siev, a lawyer for Rodriguez, wrote in a joint letter to the judge from lawyers on both sides that MLB lawyers planned to ask that the lawsuit be dismissed. Cheap NCAA Basketball Jerseys . LOUIS -- Heading into the final stretch of the season, the issues for the Chicago Bears banged-up defence only seem to be getting worse. MIAMI -- Charles Barkley says black people have got to do better in response to last weeks shootings of black men by police and the sniper attack that left five officers dead in Dallas.In an interview on ESPN radios Dan Le Batard show Tuesday, Barkley said that police have made some mistakes, that dont give us the right to riot and shoot cops. He continued thatt it bothers him that black people never get mad when black people kill each other.dddddddddddd He added that theres a lot of blame to go around.The 11-time NBA all-star and TNT commentator has often been outspoken on issues of race. 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