Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch responds to Ducks’ controversial Game 4 OT goal

In their two consecutive trips through the Western Conference in 2024 and 2025, the Edmonton Oilers faced an elimination game just once — but they’re already staring one down a week into their first-round series against the Anaheim Ducks.

Ryan Poehling scored a controversial goal in overtime, and the Ducks beat the Oilers 4-3 in Game 4 of their Round 1 series at the Honda Center on Sunday, taking a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.

The Oilers led 3-2 late in regulation, but Ducks forward Jeffrey Viel knotted the score with six minutes left. In overtime, Anaheim scored off an offensive zone faceoff, with Poehling throwing the puck towards the net and off Edmonton defenseman Darnell Nurse’s skate.

It just barely crossed the line, and head coach Kris Knoblauch is not convinced it did at all.

“They huddled, went to center ice, and then made the call that it was a good goal. It wasn’t very definitive,” Knoblauch said of the referees’ decision, per ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski.

“It was very close. I’ve seen it before where I thought we were going to get away with it. Where they thought a goal has gone in, and they haven’t been able to prove them. I thought that was what the call was going to be, but they obviously thought otherwise.”

The referees ruled it a good goal on the ice after a deliberation, meaning the NHL Situation Room had to find indisputable evidence that the goal shouldn’t count. In the official ruling, it was “determined that the puck completely crossed the goal line,” although the view was obstructed by Oilers goaltender Tristan Jarry’s skate.

“It’s hard. We were just looking at it, and you really can’t tell,” Jarry said, per Wyshynski. “You can go either way with it. Obviously, on the losing side of it, we didn’t think it went in.”

“You guys saw it on the screen. We saw it on the TVs on the bench. I don’t know how they see it as a conclusive goal,” D-man Mattias Ekholm echoed.

Regardless, Edmonton is now on the brink, and preparing for a do-or-die Game 5 at Rogers Place on Tuesday night.

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