You can sorta understand Toronto's point of view here. They already have Morgan Rielly and Jake Gardiner. I'm pretty sure they'd move Gardiner if they could...but having Rielly makes Pouliot a bit redundant. Also, they don't have a great young defender which Maatta can be. So from their perspective it makes sense that they'd be holding out for Maatta. From our perspective, we need to say to Toronto, "ok, but it's going to cost you if you want Maatta over Pouliot."
Now, on Kessel, forget the contract, the main point about acquiring Kessel for us (aside from his obvious scoring prowess) is his durability. WE desperately need more guys on the ice at crunch time. IF we were to lose a Crosby in the playoffs; or if a Malkin is playing at less than 100 per cent, well at least Kessel could carry us for a round. That's major.