Funkerstation » he told Berg in Kings Ransom. "So, I left." A

ELIZABETH, N.J. -- NBA referees will be cracking down this season on the kind of hits to the groin area that resulted in Draymond Greens suspension during the NBA Finals.They also will more closely monitor traveling after complaints from coaches that players are getting away with too many steps on the perimeter.The referees were informed and instructed about those items this week during their preseason meetings and training camp.The hits to the groin -- termed unnatural acts by the league -- are a point of emphasis after a number of situations involving Green during the postseason. Golden States All-Star forward had a habit of flailing his arms or legs and a few times made contact with opponents in the groin area.He was finally suspended after hitting Clevelands LeBron James during the Finals and missed Game 5 because of an accumulation of flagrant foul points. Cleveland rallied to beat Golden State for the title in seven games.Joe Borgia, the NBA senior vice president of replay and referee operations, said players are no longer just swinging their arms in attempt to draw a foul when taking a shot.Now all of a sudden legs are coming out in different directions at weird times, theyre coming higher, he said. Well, for the protection of the players, were going to stop it.Another point of emphasis is making sure players are allowed freedom of movement away from the ball.Critics have long griped that walking isnt called enough in the NBA, and coaches shared the complaint with officials at their recent meeting. Referees will watch especially for players who spot up behind the 3-point arc looking to shoot, but then are chased off by a defender and often get away with an extra step as they begin their dribble.Also, referees manning the Replay Center in Secaucus, New Jersey, will continue to be given greater responsibility this season. Owners will vote on a plan in October to have the replay official make the ruling on all plays that are reviewed, except for ones involving flagrant fouls and fights.Former referee Lee Jones was voted the winner of the inaugural Greg Willard Spirit Award, recognizing a current or former official for his service, professionalism and leadership. Jones officiated 1,749 regular-season games and 71 playoff games from 1971-96.Bob Delaney, the NBAs vice president of referee operations and director of officials, said if an active referee wins the award, he would for one game wear the former No. 57 of Willard, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2013 at 54. Dante Fabbro Jersey . Philadelphia is 2-0 against the Senators this season and scored five goals in each victory. The Flyers recorded a 5-0 win in Ottawa on Nov. 12 and then earned a 5-2 home decision on Nov. 19. 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Kyle Turris Jersey . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July.It was 25 years ago that Wayne Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings from the Edmonton Oilers - and stunted one of the greatest dynasties in NHL history. To many, that seems like the distant past. But to others... "It goes fast," Peter Berg, the acclaimed filmmaker and director of the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary Kings Ransom told TSN.ca this week. Berg - a self-professed life-long hockey fan - recalls the details of hearing about the trade vividly. "I was actually in Paris and I had just booked an acting job," he said. "A friend woke me up and said ‘Weve got Gretzky. And then he said, ‘We gotta buy season tickets." "I said: ‘We have to buy season tickets? and then I realized that I had to buy them. So I took all the money I made on that film and bought season tickets - because we had Gretzky." The trade turned the franchise on a dime, as Berg remembered the Kings prior to Gretzkys arrival. "They were just kind of a wonderful mess, he said. "I think they averaged a few thousand people per game and we used to go to all the games, because we could afford - for five bucks - to get a ticket." It was kind of like we had a junior team wearing NHL uniforms. Occasionally wed win and occasionally something exciting would happen." And afterwards? "When that trade happened that was exciting," Berg explained."That was the beginning of (Kings owner) Bruce McNalls desire to turn things around." The Kings morphed within the span of a year, becoming a hot spot for Hollywoods elite to coincide with the arrival of the biggest name in hockey. Kings Ransoms archival footage reveals a whos who of the late-1980s elite clamouring to get a look at The Great One: Tom Hanks, Kevin Costner, Sylvester Stallone along with Canadian-born celebs like John Candy and Michael J. Fox. Even U.S. President Ronald Reagan dropped in. "It went from being kind of pathetic to - once Bruce McNall came in - things started to get turned up," said Berg. "The Kings had an owner that was not going to accept the status quo. He was going to figure out a way to shake things up and he sure did." But what about the City of Edmonton? Therein lies the greatest question left lingering by Bergs film and one that is inevitably addressed by Gretzky himself. Gretzky and Berg traded swings on an L.A.-area golf course and Berg asked flat out: "How many Cups could you have won, had you stayed in Edmonton?" "Ummm, I dont know," Gretzky paused. "The team was good enough maybe I wouldve won four more?" So how does a city move on from the possibility of doubling down on what was already one of the greatest teams of all-time? "When you think about the dynasty that was broken up in Edmonton, you cant help but shake your head and wonder," Berg recalled. "Yeah, the trade did a lot and it opened up hockey in the southwest of the U.dddddddddddd.S. Yes, Wayne is a great ambassador for the sport and yes, his move to L.A. helped make the sport a bit more popular in America. But he never won another Cup and he broke up arguably one of the greatest dynasties in the history of professional sports." But when faced with the question of why the move had to be made, that is where Bergs narrative veers from what has traditionally been accepted as fact in Edmonton, Canada and many other hockey circles.Just about every story thats been told indicated that Oilers owner Peter Pocklington made the move out of the need to get a monetary return for his greatest asset and partially out of frustration with the sheer size of Gretzkys on- and off-ice persona. And in the end, there sat Gretzky, struggling through his tears, saying goodbye to Edmonton. In Bergs conversations with Gretzky it became clearer to the filmmaker that Gretzky was less a victim of the shrewd business tactics of Pocklington and McNall and more a willing participant in the greatest collective turn of fortune in hockey history. "I think the fact that his wife was from there was certainly a factor," he told TSN.ca. "I think the money was a factor and I think that at the end of the day the chance to do it again with another franchise was a chance to take on a new and more epic challenge," Berg said. "I think all of those factors contributed to Waynes decision." But also factoring in was Gretzkys pending free agency and the fact that at least preliminary discussions about a trade had taken place prior to Gretzky hoisting his fourth Stanley Cup with the Oilers. And Gretzky was candid about his reaction to hearing about such discussions. "I was mad they were trying to trade me," he told Berg in Kings Ransom. "So, I left." As for Pocklington, Berg was loath to paint him with the brush of villainy that immediately followed news of the trade. "Look at the reality of what kind of dynasty was broken up," Berg said. "I would imagine Pocklington knew what was happening and he knew that while - yes, he was making some cash - he was also aware of what kind of injury he was causing to his team and to his franchise." In the end, the injuries would go both ways. Gretzky retired without ever again hoisting hockeys top prize and Edmonton - despite the Oilers capturing the Cup once more in 1990 - would soon watch their empire get dismantled piece-by-piece and endure a championship drought that extends to the present day. The cost was high. But in the end, it was one that was paid out on both sides. "[Gretzky] was flat out about it," explained Berg. "He said, ‘I think about it every day, and wiped a tear out of his eye. I can imagine that every time he and Mark Messier get together, theres not a moment where they dont look into each other and kind of wonder what might have been." ' ' '