There is strong evidence to support a trade coming up for the Maple Leafs

The primary needs in Toronto this summer were certainly on defense and in goal. GM Brad Treliving has addressed those needs by signing veteran defensemen Chris Tanev, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Jani Hakanpaa to bolster the blueline and Anthony Stolarz to solidify things in the crease.

The Leafs did not make any significant moves to address any needs among the forward group, even after Tyler Bertuzzi departed in favour of signing a 4-year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks worth $5.5M per season. Even without Bertuzzi, they still have fifteen forwards vying for 12 roster spots, indicating that a trade is almost assuredly on the way.

Obviously, when looking at this list, it's easy to pinpoint Nick Robertson as the most likely piece to move, but even after his trade request, there is no guarantee that the team moves him - especially if they believe in the player and think that there's a way to repair the relationship.

Even if the Maple Leafs send Easton Cowan back to Junior for another season and start Fraser Minten in the American Hockey League, that still leaves 13 guys battling for 12 spots. Something has to give.

Treliving is a big believer in the fact that you don't build your team during the summer, you build it in the offseason. He has been quoted as saying something very similar to this in the past. If that's the case, and he practices what he preaches, we should expect a deal at some point over the next few weeks, as Connor Dewar's arbitration case is scheduled to occur between July 20th and August 4th.

Whether Dewar signs before then or goes through the process and is granted a decent arbitration award, the Leafs will be over the salary cap, as they have less than $200,000 in available cap space at the moment. This is another strong indicator that at least one trade is on the way.

Buckle up, folks. Brad's not done yet!

Source for cap info: PuckPedia
Maple Leafs salary cap info