Franchises

Ryan Getzlaf used his hind section and his stick to help give the Ducks their record-tying home victory Sunday. First, the Ducks' captain watched a hard slap shot by teammate Francois Beauchemin strike the back of his upper leg and careen directly to teammate Bobby Ryan for a tying goal in the third period. "Best pass I had all night," Getzlaf joked. Two minutes later, Getzlaf unloaded a power-play shot that teammate Corey Perry touched past St. Louis goaltender Jaroslav Halak for the decisive goal in the Ducks' 4-2 victory.

After the coffee. Before asking why I can't go to South by Southwest. The Skinny: I need to catch up on FX's "The Americans. " I'm two episodes behind and if I fall one more behind I may throw in the towel. Thursday's headlines include Time Warner's decision that Time is not on its side and a preview of the South by Southwest festival. Daily Dose: The other day the New York Post reported that NBC would like Howard Stern to replace Jimmy Fallon in late night if Fallon replaces Jay Leno.

The Ducks are two wins from matching their longest home winning streak of 11 games when the Calgary Flames visit Honda Center on Friday. "It'll be a challenge because they're playing very good right now," Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau said of the Flames after a voluntary practice Thursday. "Emotionally, and confidence-wise, they're at their highest level. "When teams feel that way, they all want badly to win that first game on the road. " As it opens a three-game trip, Calgary (9-8-4)

Greg Jennings will hit the free agent market next week, meaning a seven-year run with the Green Bay Packers that included a Super Bowl victory is likely over. The Packers declined to use their franchise tag on the star receiver, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel first reported. They would have had to offer Jennings a one-year, $10.5-million contract in guaranteed money and decided instead to prepare for a potential salary-cap crunch. Green Bay technically could still bring him back as a free agent, but top receivers are hard to come by this off-season so chances are another team will be willing to pay top dollar for the two-time Pro Bowler.

Tim Harris once played goalie for the Los Angeles Lazers, an indoor soccer team owned by Jerry Buss. Harris, now an executive with the Lakers, said that as he looks back it was obvious what Buss was doing. "He was setting up these labs for his kids to learn," Harris said. "That's how Jeanie learned and that's how I learned. Jeanie and I chuckle at it now. It wasn't that long ago we were sitting in roller hockey league meetings and now we're sitting in NBA league meetings. " Buss earned his fame and accolades by owning the Lakers and Kings.

PEORIA, Ariz. — When Albert Pujols signed his 10-year contract with the Angels, the Angels had a new face of the franchise. That did not last one year, let alone 10. Mike Trout showed up one month into last season, and the spotlight has not left him. In a star-studded clubhouse — Pujols has three most-valuable-player awards, Josh Hamilton one — the 21-year-old Trout is the brightest star. That is not just media hype, as a look at the Angels' promotional schedule shows.

It's a delicate question on so many minds. Can the Lakers successfully turn around their disheveled season and properly dedicate it to deceased team owner Jerry Buss? "I hope so," Kobe Bryant said Tuesday. "A lot of the guys here never had a chance to meet him, didn't really know him. Some of them are too young to really understand the impact and significance that he had. "Hopefully now, this is a chance they can get somewhat of a history lesson and understand what this franchise really is, what this thing means … where it's come from … hopefully we can carry that out. " Sadness was still evident at the Lakers' training facility a day after Buss died of complications from an undisclosed cancer.

What had been softly whispered for months, almost as if saying it aloud might make a terrible thing come true, became sad and public knowledge Thursday. Lakers owner Jerry Buss, not seen this season around his beloved team and for nearly a year removed from the limelight, was reported to be in the intensive care unit at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for treatment of an undisclosed form of cancer. The news, which broke hours before the Lakers' 125-101 loss to the Clippers at Staples Center, wasn't a shock, but it was a reminder of the power of one man to transform a sports franchise and bring a unique and genuine sparkle to a city awash in contrived glamour.

NEW ORLEANS -- Joe Flacco will play his last game under his rookie contract against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday in Super Bowl XLVII, but owner Steve Bisciotti made it clear that he intends to keep the quarterback in a Ravens uniform for a long time. Bisciotti said Thursday that the two sides were “real close” to a deal when the talks were tabled just before the start of this season, and he's “very comfortable” that an agreement on a long-term contract extension for Flacco will be reached in the coming months.

The words, spoken by a glowing superstar at the end of a giddy tournament, formed an outline of hope. Five months later, into this same blueprint a despairing team buries its head. It was Kobe Bryant talking about Dwight Howard. It was the caretaker of basketball's greatest franchise unofficially handing over the keys. "Look, I'm going to play two, maybe three more years … then the team is his," Bryant said at the end of the London Olympics. "I'm excited for the Laker franchise.