Ryan Getzlaf

Executives of the Canadian men's Olympic hockey team will give Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf as much time as possible to determine whether his sprained left ankle has healed enough to carry him through the Olympic tournament, but they want to see him play to ensure he's ready. They'll get only one more chance because the Ducks finish their pre-Olympic break schedule Sunday at Edmonton. Getzlaf, selected to center Canada's second line with Ducks linemate Corey Perry , injured his ankle Monday and has not played since.

EDMONTON, Canada — Ryan Getzlaf scored in overtime as the Ducks gave Edmonton fans an unhappy final look at their team at home this season, defeating the Oilers, 3-2, on Thursday night. An Edmonton shot caromed off the boards and came all the way down the ice for a Getzlaf breakaway, and he beat Edmonton goaltender Devan Dubnyk through the legs 1:12 into extra time. Andrew Cogliano and Bobby Ryan also scored for the Ducks, who ended a three-game winless streak and moved up to 23rd in the NHL with one game to play this season.

Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry met at a selection camp for an under-18 team -- or so Perry recalls. Getzlaf thought it wasn't until after the 2003 draft, in which the Ducks chose him 19th and Perry 28th, that they began forming the bond that led to having their names engraved on the Stanley Cup in 2007 and on Team Canada's roster for the Vancouver Olympics. After a moment's thought, Getzlaf decided Perry was right. "He made that team and I didn't," the rangy center said, "so that's why he remembers it."

This may not have been the end, the final turn on Anaheim ice for Teemu Selanne. But the Honda Center fans were unwilling Sunday night to risk letting the beloved Finn skate away without sharing some emotion. With about five minutes remaining, they gave the 41-year-old a prolonged standing ovation, unprompted by any scoreboard urgings. The applause and their message couldn't have been more clear-cut about Selanne's NHL future. One more year. "It's unbelievable. It's almost funny they are chanting that for an old guy like me," said Selanne, sitting in the dressing room, not long after the Oilers beat the Ducks, 2-1, in Anaheim's home finale.

The Ducks face the possibility of another extended absence by captain Ryan Getzlaf after he was ruled out indefinitely Friday because of the nasal sinus fractures caused when he was hit in the forehead by a puck Tuesday. Getzlaf was examined by a maxillofacial surgeon Friday and underwent another CT scan that showed the fractures are nondisplaced and stable, a positive sign. But doctors decided more evaluation over the next few days is necessary before the probable length of Getzlaf's absence is determined.

Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf passed tests on his left ankle Sunday night and Monday morning before officials of the Canadian Olympic team were satisfied his high-ankle sprain had fully healed and kept him on the Vancouver roster. "It's excellent," Getzlaf said Monday. "I'm the happiest guy here, that's for sure." Getzlaf was injured last Monday and didn't play again until Sunday at Edmonton, where he collected two goals and two assists. That wasn't enough, though, and he had to demonstrate his fitness again before Canada submitted its roster.

Ryan Getzlaf went nearly six months without playing a game. Judging by his performance Wednesday, he hasn't missed a stride. Getzlaf injured his left ankle Feb. 8 and played through intense pain at the Vancouver Olympics, where he helped Canada win a gold medal. He injured it twice more after the Games while trying to carry the Ducks to the playoffs, but when their cause became lost he finally gave in and didn't play after March 24. Not until mid-July did he feel right again, but his frustration vanished after his one-goal, one-assist effort in the Ducks' 5-2 exhibition victory over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday at the Honda Center.

Under intense pressure to re-establish supremacy on home ice, Canadian Olympic hockey executives announced Wednesday a 23-man roster for the Vancouver Games built around youth, a mobile but tough defense and a deep corps of internationally experienced, two-way forwards. Kings defenseman Drew Doughty, 20, was among the 15 first-time Olympians and 12 players 25 or younger were selected to the team during a nationally televised news conference. The captain will be defenseman Scott Niedermayer, one of seven members of the struggling Ducks to earn an Olympic nomination Wednesday.

Despite speculation a knee injury had limited Ryan Getzlaf's ice time to 15 minutes 55 seconds in the Ducks' Game 4 loss to Detroit, Getzlaf said Saturday that flu was behind his relatively light work load. He skipped the team's skate at the Allen Park Civic Arena but worked out off the ice with strength and conditioning coach Sean Skahan and expected to play today.

VS. DETROIT When: 7. Where: Honda Center. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 830. Records: Ducks 16-19-7, Red Wings 21-14-6. Record vs. Red Wings: 0-1-1. Update: The Ducks have lost three games in a row and are 12 points out of a tie for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. They should get a boost soon: Ryan Getzlaf, tied for the team scoring lead, is day-to-day after cutting his right leg with his skate, and Teemu Selanne could return soon after he has stitches removed from his broken left hand Wednesday.

When: 5 p.m. Where: Honda Center. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 830. Record vs. Bruins (2010-11): 1-0. Update: The Ducks said defenseman Nate Guenin might miss the remainder of the season after taking a puck to his forehead. It happened in Wednesday's 4-3 victory over St. Louis. Guenin returned to action later in the game. He has played in 15 games this season, scoring twice, and is a plus-six. Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller has been nominated for the Masterton Trophy by the Anaheim chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers' Assn.

Surely, there has to be a snappy nickname when you see Jason Blake, Saku Koivu and Teemu Selanne playing on the same line for the Ducks. Wait a minute. That means Koivu, at 37, happens to be the youngster on the line. Their line, formed again for the first time since last season, features a combined 116 years of age and experience. Coming through Wednesday was Blake, 38, who scored the winning goal with 5:54 remaining in the Ducks' 4-3 victory against the league-leading St. Louis Blues at Honda Center The special qualities of the three men have been well chronicled and go well beyond the confines of the rink.

Moving Day, Part I: Ducks General Manager Bob Murray, noting how his players responded to the firm challenge he threw down, stored the for-sale sign and let the NHL trade deadline pass, making two small minor league moves. Since then, the Ducks have suffered two losses and scored one goal in 120 minutes of action and slipped seven points out of a playoff spot in the tightly grouped Western Conference. On Wednesday, it was the Buffalo Sabres and goalie Ryan Miller taking turns suffocating the Ducks, winning, 2-0, at Honda Center.

Most valuable player = mostly vanishing privacy. You would think a league MVP in a major, celebrity-driven market would see his privacy vaporize in a dizzying flurry of red carpets, photo drive-bys and TMZ blurbs. Thankfully, there are rare exceptions to that expected course of events. Corey Perry, the Ducks forward who is the NHL's reigning MVP, recently showed that his skill for anticipation does not lie only on the ice. He seemed to know where the question was headed after the first couple of words and got off his response in rapid-fire fashion.

Twenty points out. The Ducks' Teemu Selanne referred to it as avoiding "rock bottom. " The team was 20 points from a playoff spot Jan. 6 and on the brink of turning into an NHL trading bazaar. A little more than two weeks later, 20 dwindled to 11. The Ducks' wild ride continued with a 3-2 victory over Colorado on Sunday at Honda Center with goalie Jonas Hiller making 43 saves. Their run stands at 8-0-1 since Jan. 6 and they are 11 points behind the eighth-place Avalanche in the Western Conference.

When: 7. Where: Honda Center. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket. Radio: 830. Records: Ducks 10-22-6; Islanders 14-17-6. Update: The Ducks on Thursday placed right wing Andrew Gordon and defenseman Matt Smaby on waivers. Gordon has two goals and five points in 36 games and is a minus-10. If Gordon is not claimed, he will probably head to the Ducks' minor league affiliate at Syracuse. Smaby has been out since the start of the season because of torn ligaments in his thumb.

Ducks tonight AT COLUMBUS When: 4 PDT. Where: Nationwide Arena. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 830. Records: Ducks 2-3-1, Blue Jackets, 2-2-0. Record vs. Blue Jackets (2009-10): 1-3-0. Update: Now that Bobby Ryan is on the top line again with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, the magic seems to be back. The three have combined for six goals and 13 assists in the last three games. Rookie defenseman Cam Fowler, who suffered a broken nose Sunday during the Ducks' 3-2 victory over Phoenix, was on the ice with his teammates Tuesday in Columbus as the Ducks prepared to open a four-game trip beginning with the Blue Jackets, a team spokesman said.