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Not to belabor the Brett Favre thing (who are we kidding), but it was undeniably striking to see him line up opposite the green and yellow of the Packers. It was strange to see Michael Jordan wearing a Wizards uniform for the first time. It was odd to watch Roger Clemens wearing a Blue Jays uniform ... and increasingly less odd to see him sign on the dotted line for the Yankees and Astros. But none of those situations changed an entire league the same way Wayne Gretzky did when he donned a Kings sweater for the first time.

ESPN Films' "30 for 30" series comes to life tonight (ESPN 8 p.m. ET), with acclaimed director Peter Berg's documentary (click here to listen to Berg's podcast visit with Bill Simmons) on how the Great One's trading Stanley Cup glory in Edmonton for Los Angeles affected both his career and the NHL itself.

Meanwhile, on the ice, the Kings opened this season by losing to the Coyotes. Then again, the Coyotes won each of their last three season openers when Gretzky was behind the bench. It was the other 81 games that seemed to give the team trouble.

• Your Power Rankings: Are the Coyotes no longer the worst team in the league?
• Peter Berg Chat: The director talks about "Kings Ransom" with SportsNation, 5:30 ET
• NHL Chats: E.J. Hradek talks opening week, 3 ET | Scott Burnside's Monday wrap

“

It's not like the Coyotes are as weak as they have been. They kinda WERE BUSY during the off-season as far as signings go. It's not like they spent the whole off-season in the courtroom, THEY DID MAKE SIGNINGS. And some damn good ones at that. The Kings are a potential playoff team, but there's no shame in losing to the 'Yotes at this point.

” -- stl_iceman

Michelle Beadle and Colin Cowherd tee off for a $10 million paycheck on "SportsNation" TV.

Argue the hot topics of the day and vote on the biggest stories from the world of sports. The show airs on ESPN2 at 4 p.m. and midnight ET.

Note: Broadcast voting results as of this afternoon (ET).

Should the Nets be on LeBron James' short list?
The King hasn't said anything recently to cause us to doubt his Cleveland loyalties, but the Nets are getting a new Russian billionaire owner.

Would you hire a former great player to coach your team?
Wayne Gretzky is the latest superstar player to fare poorly in management. His record in Phoenix: 143-161-24 with no playoff appearances.

Who has been more impressive this season?
The Cardinals are on the verge of wrapping up the NL Central. Have you been more impressed with Albert Pujols or St. Louis' pitching?

Do you enjoy player trash talk?
Randy Moss and the Jets defense are exchanging off-field barbs. We see the talking, even if we can't hear what the players are saying, almost every game.

Do you like Jay Leno's new show?
Many of the critics have been unkind to the former "Tonight Show" host in his new, earlier time on NBC. What's your take on Leno?

What is "SportsNation" TV, and how do you make your voice heard? Read about the new ESPN show that features fan opinions with calls, tweets, polls, rankers and more.

We learned Wednesday evening that Bobby Cox, who won 14 consecutive division titles as manager of the Braves, will retire following the 2010 season, presumably after a well-earned farewell tour around the National League. Now comes the news that Wayne Gretzky, who was noticeably missing in action in recent days from his post as coach of the Coyotes, is stepping down from the bench after an inglorious run with the franchise.

One played 220 games in the big leagues. The other once tallied 215 points in a season. We'll let you guess which one is which.

Once again, great players do not make great anything else. Go back a decade or two and there were no bigger sporting icons than Gretzky and Michael Jordan. Now one is a failed coach and the other, by most accounts, is an executive of little renown. So which legend has been a bigger flop?

• Vote: Was Gretzky a worse coach than Magic Johnson? What's next for Coyotes?
• Your Rankings: Do the Coyotes start the season No. 30 in the NHL?

“

To be closely followed by Larry Bird. At least Bird was a decent coach, but time's also running out on him as an executive. Excellence as a player doesn't always carry over to coaching or running an organization.

” -- antule14

“

Well, that's an extra $8.5 million for Phoenix...er...Hamilton.

” -- dromer1973

• Vote: Pick the Hart, Vezina, Norris, Calder and Jack Adams winners.
• Vote: Pick the division, conference and Stanley Cup winners.
• Your Power Rankings: Do the Penguins open the season No. 1?

Believe it or not, the start of the NHL regular season is just about a week away. No, seriously, we're not kidding. We know the leaves haven't turned and summer doesn't actually end until today, but what the heck, it's been, what, at least three or four weeks since the Penguins won the Stanley Cup, right?

Then again, maybe that short offseason helps keep the NHL fresh in SportsNation's mind. A year ago, voters correctly predicted the Red Wings to win the Western Conference and made the Penguins their second choice, behind the Red Wings, to win it all.

Blackhawks star Patrick Kane and ESPN.com writer Scott Burnside stopped by chat Monday to help SportsNation get its ice legs before jetting off to Europe (Burnside to Stockholm for the Red Wings and Blues and Kane to Helsinki for the Blackhawks and Panthers).

Jason (Ellicott City, MD)

You are only rated an 86 in NHL. What is up with that?

Patrick Kane

I think an 86 is pretty good to be honest with you. I think the highest are Crosby and 94 and Ovechkin at 92. I thought I'd be better than Teows, but I am still on the cover. I got him by that. Full transcript

AJ (Champaign, Ill.)

How do the Blackhawks avoid a lull in their performance after they return from Finland?

Scott Burnside

AJ; Good question. The European experiment has been decidedly mixed in terms of how it affects teams. All four coaches who went last year got fired although the Pens did end up winning a Cup. I think the 'Hawks' youth and the nice steady hand of head coach Joel Quenneville will keep them from going off the rails when they get back from Finland. Full transcript

For sale: NHL team, priced to move (well, not literally, but we'll get to that). Hall of Fame talent behind the bench, nothing close to Hall of Fame talent on the ice. Did not rank last in the league in attendance last season (thank you, Thrashers). Please, no Canucks!

If you're looking to take a hockey trip in the darkest days of January, head south. Not because of the weather, although that's a perk, but because that's where the tickets are. The NHL has 10 teams that reside south of the Mason-Dixon Line, and nine of them ranked in the bottom half of the league in the percentage of capacity for home games.

So why is commissioner Gary Bettman so enamored with keeping the Coyotes in Glendale, Ariz.? The short version is Ontario rich guy Jim Balsillie wants to pay a lot of money to move the team to Ontario, and Coyotes owners Jerry Moyes wanted to sell it to him. The NHL rejected Balsillie and wants the team to go to Jerry Reinsdorf for significantly less money and stay in Glendale. And just this week, any resolution was delayed until September.

More than half of SportsNation is comfortable with the NHL maintaining its current size, if not even growing, but some relocation might be in order. Back in May, a majority of voters expected the financially-stricken Coyotes to be somewhere other than Arizona this season. That now appears unlikely, but it doesn't change the fact that Bettman and his fellow owners appear just about the only ones who think Phoenix is a better market for hockey.

• Almost half of SportsNation expects at least two NHL teams to move by 2014.
• Hartford edges Seattle as the ideal relocation point in the United States.
• Groups: Hockey Fanatics | The Puck Stops Here! | Phoenix Coyotes fans

“

Why not do what mom and dad always told us kids? SHARE. Play half the season in Phoenix and half in Hamilton. Have Balsillie and Reinsdorf co-own the team. Simple.

” -- MiamiWing

“

This right here, this one team sale, will be the legacy of Gary Bettman. The city of Glendale loses, the NHL loses, the owners of profitable franchises (Canadian teams) lose big time because they will continue to prop this mess up with profit sharing, fans lose, players who waste the next 5 years of their career there lose, and old owners lose. Through it all Winnipeg continues to sit there and say "What happened? We had fans. We made the playoffs"

” -- kingnormandy