from Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal,

With the defending Cup champion Los Angeles Kings giving up a first-round draft pick in 2015 and a blue-chip prospect to acquire solid Carolina Hurricanes defenceman Andrej Sekera, the gauntlet has been thrown down at the feet of their rival, the Anaheim Ducks.

Can Edmonton Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish squeeze a first-rounder out of the Ducks now for Jeff Petry? Maybe.

Petry is the best available rental defenceman on the board now, unless you are a Zbynek Michalek fan from Arizona, and the dominoes usually start to fall in the West when one Cup threat makes a bold move.

Montreal, Detroit, Tampa, Washington, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and the Ducks are all looking for one more defenceman, and Sekera, 28, who plays hard and can make a good first pass and might sign with L.A. after the season, may have set the price for rental defencemen.

The feeling has long been that the Oilers were looking for a second-round pick and a solid blue-line prospect for teams, but maybe Sekera has changed MacTavish’s game plan somewhat.

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