Controversial offside call sinks Flyers against Oilers

The Philadelphia Flyers played a gutsy game on Wednesday night against the Edmonton Oilers. Edmonton dominated most of the game, with the lopsided 25-11 shot count after 40 minutes underscoring the Oilers’ dominance.

But the Flyers came out and played a fantastic third period. Philly outshot the Oilers 9-5 and had the Western Conference champions on their heels the entire period.

Then, with less than 30 seconds to go, the Wells Fargo Center erupted as it appeared Travis Konecny had scored the go-ahead goal. The goal was the result of the Flyers’ hard work and tenacity throughout the night.

But there was a brief pause amid the Flyers’ celebration on the ice. The goal underwent review, with the play deemed offside.

Check out the play here:

The image shows both of Owen Tippett’s feet over the blue line before the puck entered the zone. It’s a bit of a grey area as the puck appears to touch the blue line. That situation would have allowed the play to continue.

However, the Situation Room believed the play was indeed offside, leading the Flyers’ go-ahead goal to be called back.

The game went to overtime with Jack Roslovic ending the night with his fourth of the season. While the Flyers got a point out of the game, it’s a tough pill to swallow nonetheless. Philly got a much-deserved goal, which, unfortunately, got called back on a technicality.

Vladar sensational for Flyers in losing effort

Flyers goalie Dan Vladar continues to shine in the crease. He made 30 saves on the night, keeping Philadelphia in the game the entire night.

The early onslaught from the Oilers kept the Flyers on their heels for the first period and most of the second. While Philly found its footing later in the second period, the game was clearly tilted in Edmonton’s favor.

If it hadn’t been for Vladar’s strong outing, the game could have easily been a blowout. It’s also worth pointing out that the Oilers did their best to crash the Flyers’ net. Two incidents, one involving Curtis Lazar and the other Trent Frederic, proved the Oilers were out to knock Vladar out of the way.

The Lazar incident saw the Oilers’ depth forward land on Vladar’s hand. The Flyers’ goalie was in visible pain but was ultimately fine. The collision was more the result of incidental contact than anything else.

But it was Frederic’s intentional collision in the third period that led to a major scuffle around the Flyers’ crease. Frederic ended up getting the gate for interference on Vladar. Meanwhile, the Flyers' netminder got called for roughing as his frustration boiled over.

The Flyers must be more protective of their goalie moving forward. An injury to Vladar at this point could put the Flyers in an even tougher spot.