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Kris Knoblauch and the Oilers are down against the Ducks.

Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch reacted to the Anaheim Ducks’ controversial OT goal, saying he didn’t see the pick go in.

Ducks center Ryan Poehling scored a lucky goal in overtime during Sunday’s Game 4 between the Oilers and Ducks, as the Ducks took a commanding 3-1 series lead. The goal was extremely controversial, as the on-ice officials originally had no call before huddling up and calling it a good goal on the ice. The NHL’s war room then reviewed the goal, and they confirmed the puck crossed the goal line, although Oilers players thought the goal didn’t cross the line.

Speaking to reporters following the game, the Oilers’ head coach was asked what he thought about the controversial goal, and Knoblauch said he also wasn’t convinced it crossed the line.

“I can’t see (the puck) going in. I can’t see the line. You can’t see any space between the blue line (and the puck). Similarly, you talk about the blue line, offsides, there’s been many times where I’ve seen, ‘oh, this is offsides,’ and they don’t have the absolute proof of it. I thought that was going to be called tonight, also,” Knoblauch said.

“I guess the goal call on the ice was probably about 60-90 seconds after, or even more. They huddled, then they got to center ice, and then they made the call that it was a good goal. So I don’t know. It wasn’t very definitive.”

Oilers in Must-Win Situation

Now that the Oilers are down 3-1 in the playoff series against Anaheim, the team faces a must-win situation on Tuesday when they travel back to Edmonton for Game 5. If the Oilers lose this game, their series is over, so they absolutely have to win, or else it will be another failed year for the team. Given that they have the best hockey player in the world in Connor McDavid as their captain, the fact that the Oilers have not been able to win the Stanley Cup yet with him looks bad on the organization. This is a team with a winning history and culture, and they need to be at their best in Game 5 against Anaheim, or else they will be hitting the golf courses early this year.

Kris Knoblauch Could be Coaching for his Job

Knoblauch joined the Oilers in November 2023, replacing former coach Jay Woodcroft. Since then, Knoblauch has led the Oilers to two straight Stanley Cup finals, although the team ultimately came up short both times to the Florida Panthers. Still, it’s hard to win in this league, so the fact that Knoblauch led the team to the finals twice is certainly a feather in his cap.

That being said, if the Oilers are upset by the Ducks and knocked out in the first round this year, there will be calls for him to get fired, not to mention Oilers GM Stan Bowman, who has made several errors as the team’s general manager. Knoblauch has proven he is an excellent coach, but the Oilers may look to change things up if they get knocked out here in round one by the Ducks.