'He blew it': Cassidy irked after ref's non-call precedes Oilers' OT winner

Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy let loose after an unpenalized play preceded Edmonton's overtime winner and allowed the Oilers to take a 2-0 series lead Thursday night.

Oilers forward Viktor Arvidsson got his stick caught between Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb's legs with less than five minutes remaining in the extra frame, sending the rearguard crashing into the boards.

McNabb departed the game, and Leon Draisaitl potted the 5-4 winner just 17 seconds later.

"Listen, (referee Gord Dwyer's) looking at it," Cassidy said postgame. "He blew it. He missed the call. I don't know what else to say. I mean, it's a can-opener trip, it's a dangerous play, it's all those things. But it didn't get called, so you gotta keep playing. (McNabb) is one of our guys, probably one of the most popular teammates in the room, so that is a tough part of playing through it."

He added, "At the end of the day, that's the task in front of you when those calls happen or don't happen. They made a play and capitalized on it. It stings to lose that way. Next question."

Cassidy didn't have an update on McNabb's status.

Captain Mark Stone agreed with his bench boss' take on the play.

"Pretty clear it's a penalty," he said. "His stick's between McNabb's legs, he sends him headfirst into the boards. A pretty clear-cut penalty in my eyes, I think everybody's eyes, right? ... It's just a dirty play."

That wasn't the only controversial sequence between the Pacific Division rivals in overtime. Vegas center Nicolas Roy was handed a five-minute major and tossed from the game for cross-checking Oilers forward Trent Frederic in the face.

Roy will have a hearing for his actions Friday.

The Golden Knights were able to kill the five-minute power play but couldn't turn that momentum into a goal.

"This one will sting, but the positive tomorrow will be good," Cassidy said. "I felt we outplayed the Oilers for most of the game and deserved a better fate. How will the guys look at that? If they take it as, 'Hey, we've just gotta carry that over.'

"We've always said we want to get better as the series goes on. Well, we were certainly better than Game 1, so we've got to improve on today if we expect to get back into it. It's that simple."

The Oilers have their first 2-0 series lead since 2017 when they ultimately fell to the Anaheim Ducks in the second round.

Game 3 is scheduled for Saturday at 9 p.m. ET in Edmonton.