"It was a question": Oilers coach Woodcroft baffled at why he was ejected
Edmonton Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft is not quite sure why he got ejected in the final minutes of a 6-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Monday night.
With about 6:47 left to go in the game, and the Canucks holding onto a demanding 5-2 lead, the whistle was blown and the Oilers were given a unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. A TV camera then caught Woodcroft walking down the tunnel back to the Oilers dressing room.
Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft was ejected with 6:47 left in the third#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/ZO45z7aRLt
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) November 7, 2023
After the game, Woodcroft was asked by the media about what exactly happened in the lead-up to the ejection.
“I asked about the play on [Dylan] Holloway,” explained Woodcroft after the game. “It wasn’t profanity-laced or anything like that, it was a question. It wasn’t well-received [by the refs] when I asked the question. In the end, I gotta be better, I can’t take a penalty to put our team down.
“I didn’t think [my comments] crossed the line at all, but sometimes the way you send a message or ask a question the way it’s received might be not in the manner you intended to.”
"I liked the fight in our team."
Coach Woodcroft speaks after tonight’s loss. @Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/gSBoBgiZpU
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) November 7, 2023
The play on Holloway that Woodcroft is referring to came just before the penalty was called and the ejection was handed out. Holloway was driving the Canucks net when Vancouver forward J.T. Miller appears to cross-check him to the ice. There was no penalty on the play.
Woodcroft went on to say that he thought the play was similar to a penalty given to Connor McDavid earlier in the period.
“I thought it was a fair question, [the ref] didn’t and in the end, I gotta be better. Can’t ask that question apparently,” said Woodcroft.
This was the first time an Oilers coach has been ejected from a game since 1983, when Glen Sather was tossed from a game against the LA Kings.
These are tense times in Edmonton. The team is second-last in the entire league with a 2-8-1 record and reports over the week seem to indicate that Woodcroft’s job could be in peril if the team doesn’t do well on this road trip.
The only team worse than the Oilers is the San Jose Sharks, who have yet to win a game this season. As fate would have it, those Sharks could decide Woodcroft’s future as the Oilers are in San Jose on Thursday.
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