The Edmonton Oilers thought they would make amends for their loss to Detroit two nights ago. Instead, it was the Toronto Maple Leafs who ended their three-match losing streak to hand Kris Knoblauch‘s squad its second straight defeat at home. But the loss didn’t come without its controversies, with Oilers center Leon Draisaitl at the thick of things.

The visitors were up by 3-0 after the end of the first period, a lead they held off till the final seconds. The second period saw the Edmonton Oilers firing up the guns, but being unable to close the gap. However, in the third period, Draisaitl came close to scoring an equalizer, only to be denied because of technicalities. Naturally, the German NHL star had a few things to say after the match.

Edmonton Oilers star broods over technical woes

In a YouTube upload by the Oilers from February 1 shared Leon’s feelings about his waived goal from tonight’s match. Admitting that the team dug itself a hole that was “too hard to come out” of, Draisaitl also mentioned how the off-side rule didn’t help Edmonton’s cause either. He went on to say that he “had no idea in the moment” that the goal would be denied for being off-side. But he’s not one to call a rule foul just because that didn’t aid in his cause.

“I mean at the end of the day it is offside that’s the rule and obviously we have to live with that,” the Edmonton Oilers celebrity acknowledged without having two ways about it. And yet, despite all the knowledge about the game and its rules, it’s hard not to have a sinking feeling. “…sometimes it’s obviously unfortunate that it’s centimeters,” Draisaitl said with a sullied face.

Despite the Leafs’ goalie Joseph Woll being in top form all night (he made 45 saves at tonight’s game), Draisaitl managed to bury a one-timer from the high slot. But Toronto coach Craig Berube called a timeout and subsequently issued a challenge. The review showed Oilers’ John Klingberg’s skate to be in an offside position, and the goal was canceled. Talk about being unlucky! The hopes of the Oilers winning the match ended right there. But coach Kris seemed to think the match was decided in the first period itself.

The fate of the Oilers was apparent early in the night

Edmonton was slapped with two penalty kills in the first period of the match, which resulted in two goals for Toronto. “We lost two battles there,” Knoblauch said about the drama but noted that the Edmonton Oilers still had a pretty good first period. However, the off-side was a sharp blow to the abdomen, which the team seems to be reeling from even now. “We saw it on the bench, kind of felt it was coming. It was very close, and sometimes too close to overturn it. But, yes, we did feel it was offside,” the coach said further.

But at the Leafs camp, it’s jubilation unhinged. “They’re a good team, obviously, and they made a good push, and I was just doing everything in my power to keep the puck out of the net. It was a good win for us, a big win. It was our fans that were pretty loud, pretty on par with theirs. It was cool,” said Toronto’s netminder Woll. But Edmonton fans are looking to put the blame on their goalie Stuart Skinner once again, as calls for a more capable goaltender mount.

The Edmonton Oilers hit the road to take on St Louis and Chicago this week. Will they be able to make the most of the return of their captain McDavid who recently came back onto the ice after serving a three-match suspension? Or will the fans be left with more heartbreaks in the coming days? Tell us below!