I know everybody hates the Leafs but come on.
Once they lock up Marner (for 11M+ hopefully), they'll have their entire core locked up for the next 3 years at least outside of Freddy Andersen who only had 2 years left.
A core of Matthews, Tavares, Marner, Nylander, Rielly and Andersen will always compete with the best. Those are the toughest pieces to acquire, fill out the depth later. They also have tons of attractive trade pieces to fill out the roster with cheaper options if need be.
With that said, Matthews certainly didn't give them any discount.