You don't seem to understand how contracts work; or trades for that matter.
Taveris is signed for seven years. If he has a few good years, he doesn't get to ask for more money. Most of the other key players will be locked in to similar contracts by the end of this year.
In the case that they are not able to sign a key player. They don't just lose him; they will trade him for other players that can help the team win. Just because Ottawa tends to get poor returns on their trades; it doesn't mean that the Leafs will experience similar poor results. In recent years the Leafs have got pretty good value on several of their trades... In some cases by trading with Ottawa...
And the Marlies had a very good year last year. So we should have some more good your players coming up soon.
I think the next few years are going to be difficult for you...