The Anaheim Ducks were on fire tonight. Despite another disappointing season, the Ducks seemed to have all the answers against the Edmonton Oilers. Then again, they did play against a shorthanded Oilers side with stars like Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, and more, sitting this one out. It still took an exceptional performance from Ducks’ goalie Lukas Dostal to keep the Oilers at bay.

However, what made fans even more angry was what they believed were officiating lapses that worked in the Ducks’ favor. One of the biggest incidents fans argued about was Radko Gudas’ hit on Corey Perry, which sent the Oiler to the ground and his helmet flying. Announcer Louie DeBrusk immediately called it out during the replay. “He pops him, that’s a penalty, that was absolutely missed by the officials,” he said.

Besides the officials not handing Gudas a penalty, what bothered the fans was the lack of reaction from the Edmonton Oilers. None of the Oilers challenged the play or squared up against the Ducks’ defenseman despite watching their teammate take a huge hit. “Perry has stood up for his younger teammates many times this season. Time for one of them to return the favor,” wrote reporter and podcast host Jason Gregor.

“Not that Perry can’t do it himself, but would be good to see someone else do it,” explained the reporter. And he wasn’t wrong about Corey Perry sticking up for his teammates this season. What better example than when Perry became one of the loudest voices in the Oilers to protest against Connor McDavid’s three-match ban?

The NHLPA suspended and fined McDavid for his high cross-check infraction against Canucks defenseman Connor Garland in January. While many in the community protested the ruling as too harsh, Perry didn’t hesitate to call out the league. “Why aren’t we protecting the superstars?” the Edmonton Oilers forward told Mark Spector, adding how other leagues do it.

Another aspect that differed from what transpired against the Ducks was how the team reacted. While Perry called out the league after the match, during the incident he and the rest of the team engaged in a brawl with the Canucks, resulting in multiple penalties for both teams. So it’s no wonder that the officiating, combined with the lack of response from the Oilers, sparked debate among the fans.

Fans wanted the Edmonton Oilers to show some spark

“Why are the Oilers standing around watching what’s going on?” commented one fan as almost no one seemed to bat an eye while Corey Perry picked himself up and skated off to the bench. Thankfully, the forward returned later in the period. However, Gudas wasn’t done for the night; he sent another Oilers player, Vasily Podkolzin, to the beach after a collision.

Podkolzin also returned to the bench, relieving the fans of the concern. Considering, that the Edmonton Oilers are having a ‘when it rains, it pours’ moment with injuries right now, it’s no wonder the fans felt concerned. Yet, the fans in the comments continued to lament how none of the Oilers tried to return the favor in kind.

“I wish the team stood up for Perry here, considering he does his best to be there for them,” commented another fan. Some even suggested names like Darnell Nurse, and Max Jones as the players who could respond in kind to the Anaheim Ducks. However, the 30-year-old recalled the situation and appeared satisfied with how the Oilers didn’t escalate the situation.

“Sometimes things happen out there… I thought our response was pretty good,” Nurse said about what happened in the second period. You could say the Edmonton Oilers did try to answer back with their attempts to beat the Ducks. And they certainly tried. Unfortunately, the McDavid and Draisaitl-less Oilers just lacked the offensive punch, as Mark Spector noted.

“This is a game getting out of hand because refs have missed too much – as Lou DeBrusk points out,” said the veteran hockey reporter. “But frankly, with playoffs around the corner, Oilers could show some backbone in the 3rd. Ducks running around pretty good. Only one way to stop ’em,” added Spector, suggesting equally aggressive play to level the playing field in the third.

Some others were of a similar opinion, even if responding with similar hits would cost the Edmonton Oilers a player. “Pathetic officiating as usual. Not sure why any Oiler doesn’t go after some of the talent. Don’t care how. Take the suspension,” wrote another netizen. The fans suggested the Oilers could potentially put a player who won’t be playing in the playoffs to deliver a few hits.

However, it seemed the Oilers were focused on trying to win the game despite the absence of some key players. Edmonton did not shy away from sending the puck toward the Ducks’ goal. However, Lukas Dostal was at his best against the Stanley Cup contenders. So much so, that the goaltender saved 45 out of the 47 shots on target, in his best net-minding performance of the entire season.

The Edmonton Oilers were equally unlucky as well. Besides Dostal playing like a nearly impenetrable wall, the Oilers missed an opportunity to score a dramatic equalizer in the last 10 seconds of the third period. A shot from Evan Bouchard hit the wrong side of the post and bounced off instead of going inside. All in all, it was a disappointing night for the NHL team.

Thankfully, coach Kris Knoblauch remains confident that players like Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, Mattias Ekholm, Stuart Skinner, John Klingberg, and Evander Kane will join the squad as the playoffs commence on 19th April. And finally, maybe the Oilers avoided conflict on the ice because nothing really changed even after losing to the Ducks. The only difference is the LA Kings will now get the home-ice advantage in their Round 1 playoffs meeting. Yet, what did you think of the incident? Tell us in the comments.