Hardwick emphatically rejected the notion the Tigers sold the farm to bring Lynch to Punt Road, with some critics suggesting they now lack depth.
Reece Conca (Fremantle), Corey Ellis and Anthony Miles (Gold Coast), Sam Lloyd (Western Bulldogs) and Tyson Stengle (Adelaide) all departed in last year's NAB AFL Trade Period.
Riewoldt and skipper Trent Cotchin were among those who restructured their contracts ahead of Lynch's arrival.
"The management of our cap is something we manage really carefully and our guys did a power of work two years ago on the Tom Lynch deal, so freeing up cap space for this to happen," the coach said.
"That's what smart clubs do and our club falls, I feel, into that category. We always knew this was what it was going to look like.
"It's not as if we all of a sudden said 'Let's go after, Tom – oh, geez, we've got to make some room and get rid of these blokes'.
"Our guys work very hard on understanding the length of contracts, the timing of contracts and the amount of money we need in certain situations, so it was a very calculated decision."
Source: AFL website