NHL Trade Rumors: Maple Leafs' trade focus on two-way defencemen

John Chayka hasn't been on the top for a week yet and already there's been plenty of speculation on what's going on behind the curtains of the Toronto Maple Leafs' front office.

From a cringe-worthy press conference thanks to Keith Pelley and Steve Simmons, to winning the NHL Draft Lottery and adding Gavin McKenna to your group, the Leafs narrative has changed 50 different times this week, and that doesn't even include Auston Matthews potentially demanding a trade.

As far as their defence goes, that remains the top of mind focus for Chayka's offseason and he's confirmed to Elliotte Friedman, he'll be looking to add some mobility on the back end, and a couple of puck-moving defencemen. Both Matthews and William Nylander asked for the same thing in their exit meetings, letting the coaching staff and management know, they need a better defence core.

Chayka's going to be making trade offers on Morgan Rielly, Brandon Carlo and Simon Benoit, meanwhile, Jake McCabe, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Chris Tanev are rumored to be safe. Rielly has a full no-movement clause and has been linked to the San Jose Sharks and Vancouver Canucks. 

While Darren Raddysh is on the free-agent market, he's a flight risk because of the sample size, and he's going to demand some big money this summer. Expect Chayka to take a little bit of a safer route, and trade for a more established top-pair d-man, who can run a power play and also play on PK2. 

Dougie Hamilton has been linked before but that seems like a fallback option at this point. Chayka's going to shoot for a superstar and could be open to moving the likes of Rielly, Nick Robertson and the team's second round pick to make it happen.

Keep an eye on the Leafs. After they draft McKenna, expect some fireworks on the trade market.

Photo credit: Bob Lee, Imagn Images