Matthews was still on his entry level contract when Tavares was signed. Dubass overpaying Tavares caused Dubass to overpay Matthews and Marner. If Tavares wanted to play for his hometown team, he could have taken a lot less money. Then Matthews could have taken less and still get paid more than Tavares. Winning individual awards like the Calder, Hart, and the Richard Trophy twice, may not matter to the fans much, but it sure does to Matthews, in that he will command even more money on his next contract. Then what? Half of the team will need to get traded, because of the salary cap. So there you go. Overpaying for Tavares will actually kill the Leaf's chances of winning the cup, rather than help it.