The Toronto Maple Leafs drafted Auston Matthews first overall during the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. They got their franchise center that they have been waiting for since Mats Sundin departed the team almost a decade earlier.
John Tavares signed with the Leafs on July 1st, 2018, two years after they drafted Matthews. By joining the team, he instantly made them Stanley Cup contenders and gave them the deepest center core out of the entire NHL.
In 2015, the Leafs did not have any centers worthy of the number one line. Tyler Bozak was really a second or third line center and Nazem Kadri was nowhere close to how good he is today.