With McDavid suspended, Oilers need W vs. Ducks

Trying to make the playoffs is already a tall order for the Edmonton Oilers, but the task became a lot more difficult Friday night.

The Oilers, needing to vault five teams over their final 22 games to jump into a playoff spot, will be without superstar captain Connor McDavid after he was given a two-game suspension that begins Saturday, when Edmonton hosts the Anaheim Ducks.

McDavid was suspended for a hit to the head on Nick Leddy of the New York Islanders in Thursday's 4-3 overtime victory, a game in which McDavid scored the winning goal.

"Obviously, it's not a great check," McDavid told reporters after the game. "It's not what I was trying to do. I was trying to finish my check and he stopped a little earlier than I thought and I hit him a bit too high."

Even McDavid seemed as if he was expecting some form of discipline, the organization wasn't happy with the punishment.

"We are highly disappointed in the NHL's decision to suspend Connor McDavid for two games. We strongly disagree with the decision and it is difficult to accept for our team and most important our fans at this critical point in our season. We will unequivocally support Connor as he explores his options," the team said in a statement.

"He (McDavid) went for the puck," Oilers coach Ken Hitchcock said. "That guy (Leddy) pulled up. He wasn't sending a message to anybody. Nick doesn't play that way and Connor doesn't play that way. He's not sending a message. I don't want to comment on the player safety issues because I just know no matter what you think or feel, they're going to do what they're going to do. A lot of times when you go into those meetings, they already have something in mind off of what they reviewed."

The Oilers, who have a 0-1-1 record this season without their top scorer, snapped a five-game losing skid with that win over New York. It was also their first home-ice victory in seven outings.

The Ducks arrive in Edmonton after a 2-1 loss at the Calgary Flames on Friday night -- a loss which snapped Anaheim's two-game winning streak. Calgary's Andrew Mangiapane scored with 3 1/2 minutes to play to win it.

"We can't let that frustrate us. We need to get right back at it and keep pushing," Anaheim forward Carter Rowney told the team's website after the game. "I think we had our chances. They pushed hard, and we had to find a way to push back in the third. Just couldn't find a way to put one in the back of the net."

Anaheim was without captain Ryan Getzlaf in Calgary due to an undisclosed injury. His status for Saturday's game isn't known.

The Ducks have 3-2-0 record since general manager Bob Murray took over as head coach following the firing of Randy Carlyle. Anaheim is seven points off the pace for a wild card spot, one point ahead of the Oilers.

--Field Level Media