The New York Rangers have added longtime NHL bench boss Jacques Martin to their staff as an assistant coach, the team announced Monday.

Martin, 67, replaces Lindy Ruff, who was hired as head coach of the New Jersey Devils in July.

The Ontario native has been with the Pittsburgh Penguins since 2013, serving as an assistant coach with the club over parts of the last five seasons. He helped Pittsburgh capture the Stanley Cup in both 2016 and 2017.

Pittsburgh parted ways with Martin and fellow assistants Mark Recchi and Sergei Gonchar after the club's qualifying-round loss to the Montreal Canadiens earlier this month.

Martin began his NHL coaching career as the St. Louis Blues' bench boss in 1986-87. He has since served as head coach for the Ottawa Senators (1995-2004), Florida Panthers (2006-08), and Canadiens (2010-12). Martin earned the Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach in 1998-99.

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Another 2-0 day on Sunday closed out a perfect 4-0 weekend as we cruise toward the end of Round 2. Those series bets are looking quite nice, as well.

Let's never lose again.

Boston Bruins (-105) @ Tampa Bay Lightning (-125)

You imagine a team as experienced as the Bruins will come out swinging when backed into a corner. But, they've provided little evidence to suggest that will be the case here. This veteran bunch has been thoroughly outplayed since the second period of Game 1 and, on the brink of elimination in Game 5, they look cooked.

As good as Boston's top line is, it's asking a lot for them to shoulder this large of a burden. The Lightning's depth has overwhelmed the Bruins, who have been deprived of secondary scoring as a result. Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak have scored five of their team's eight goals in the series, and four of those eight have come on the power play. Scoring just four five-on-five goals through four games isn't a recipe for winning a series.

The Lightning have been better in every aspect of this series, one which they are good value to finish off Monday night. Boston won Game 1 when these teams met in the 2018 playoffs before losing four straight, and all signs point to history repeating itself tonight.

Pick: Lightning (-125)

Dallas Stars (+115) @ Colorado Avalanche (-135)

We cashed together on the Stars (+115) if you tailed yesterday, but I'm flipping the script Monday night. Dallas was coming off its best contest of the series in Game 3, and now the same can be argued regarding the Avalanche in Game 4 despite losing.

It was the first time in this series the Avs truly had the better play at five-on-five, controlling an almost unbelievable 68.99% of the expected goal share and generating 14 high-danger scoring chances to Dallas' six. Colorado couldn't stay out of the box and its penalty kill struggled, allowing the Stars to strike three times on the power play.

That wasn't the only issue for the Avalanche in a truly strange game. Cale Makar's error gifted the Stars the winning goal, but most detrimental was the Avs' awful start as they fell into a 3-0 hole after about 10 minutes. With their playoff lives hanging in the balance, expect a much different showing from the Avalanche right out of the gate to extend this series to a sixth game.

Pick: Avalanche (-135)

(Odds source: theScore Bet)

Alex Moretto is a sports betting writer for theScore. A journalism graduate from Guelph-Humber University, he has worked in sports media for over a decade. He will bet on anything from the Super Bowl to amateur soccer, is too impatient for futures, and will never trust a kicker. Find him on Twitter @alexjmoretto.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs surprised the hockey world Tuesday by trading Kasperi Kapanen to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a six-player deal that netted them a 2020 first-round pick. The move itself wasn't entirely shocking, but the timing of it - in the midst of the Stanley Cup Playoffs - certainly was.

Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas has a busy offseason ahead of him, so it was important to handle any business involving Kapanen sooner rather than later. He spent most of his first full offseason last summer trying to shed Patrick Marleau and Nikita Zaitsev's contracts and negotiate a new deal for Mitch Marner.

Now, Dubas has a full offseason to leave his fingerprints on the team, and more flexibility to do so after the Kapanen trade. Here are four questions the Maple Leafs will need to answer this offseason:

Will the 'Core-4' remain intact?

Many believe a team can't function properly in a salary-cap league if it's paying four players more than a combined $40 million. However, it seems unlikely that Toronto parts ways with one of Marner, Auston Matthews, John Tavares, or William Nylander.

Only Marner and Nylander are even remotely possible, and only if either is moved for an elite defenseman. It would be tough to find a suitable partner that can take Marner's $10.893-million cap hit and give up a cornerstone defenseman, and Nylander likely doesn't have enough trade value to net an elite blue-liner.

Prediction: All four players remain in Toronto.

Will there be more cap casualties?

Trading Kapanen created $3.2 million in cap flexibility, but the Maple Leafs can still make more room by dealing another forward. Andreas Johnsson and Alexander Kerfoot are reportedly prime candidates.

Johnsson, 25, is signed for three more seasons with an average annual value of $3.4 million, and he's just one year removed from a 20-goal campaign. The 26-year-old Kerfoot is locked in over the same length at a near-identical $3.5 million AAV. The latter may offer more value due to his ability to play center.

It will be nearly impossible to land a legitimate top-four defenseman if Dubas decides to hang on to either Johnsson or Kerfoot. Toronto will still have less than $3.5 million to spend on a blue-liner if only one is traded, which won't be enough money for the type of player the Maple Leafs hope to attract.

Prediction: Johnsson will be traded to the New Jersey Devils - who were reportedly interested in Kapanen - with a 2020 fourth-round pick for a 2020 third-round pick and 2021 third-rounder. Kerfoot will be traded the Florida Panthers with a 2020 fourth-round selection - originally owned by the Vegas Golden Knights - for a 2020 second-rounder.

How will they acquire a top-4 defenseman?

It's possible the Maple Leafs explore a trade for a defenseman. The Minnesota Wild may be willing to part with a member of their defense corps in preparation for the Seattle expansion draft - perhaps Matt Dumba or Jonas Brodin - but the price would certainly be high. Such a move could require parting with a blue-chip prospect such as Rasmus Sandin, which is likely not something Dubas wants to do.

Instead, the Maple Leafs could go the free-agency route, as prices may not be as high as projected before the COVID-19 pandemic. The flat salary cap will hamper the ability of many teams to sign players, and the loss of revenue could affect the spending by some smaller market clubs.

There are plenty of intriguing players who could be available for the right price, including Dustin Byfuglien, T.J. Brodie, Chris Tanev, and Travis Hamonic - all of whom play the right side.

Prediction: Maple Leafs sign Brodie - a player Dubas nearly acquired for Nazem Kadri - to a three-year, $15-million contract.

Will there be a change in goal?

Frederik Andersen has one year remaining on his contract before he hits unrestricted free agency. He's coming off his worst regular season with the Maple Leafs, though he did sport a .936 save percentage in five playoff games against the Columbus Blue Jackets. It was far from his fault that the team didn't advance, but he was outplayed in the crease for the fourth straight postseason.

It's possible the Maple Leafs could move Andersen and sign a goalie in free agency for less than his $5-million cap hit. However, trade partners could be limited, as only contenders would be interested in Andersen since he's a rental, and most contending teams already have a goalie. The ones that don't would likely rather find one via free agency so they don't have to give up any players in return.

Prediction: Andersen plays out the final year of his contract.

The finished product

We've made a 2020-21 lineup prediction upon answering the four questions. It includes a trio of bargain UFA additions to replace Kapanen and the hypothetical losses of Kerfoot and Johnsson. Here's a look at the roster, which comes in $341,467 under the $81.5-million salary cap, according to CapFriendly:

Bold = projected acquisition
* = projected re-signing

Forwards

Defense

Goalies

There are undoubtedly some significant question marks in the bottom-six forward group (Thornton is 41), but similar uncertainties existed even with Kerfoot and Johnsson eating up close to a combined $7 million, and moving them would allow Dubas to turn the blue line from a definite weakness into a strength.

Lehtonen was the KHL Defenseman of the Year in 2019-20. His addition and the growth of Sandin make it possible for Dermott to potentially be used as trade bait. However, the Maple Leafs learned in the postseason how critical defensive depth is.

If this group can't get over the hump in the playoffs, then it might be time to revisit Question 1.

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The New York Islanders are on the cusp of moving on to the Eastern Conference Final after dispatching the Philadelphia Flyers by a final score of 3-2 on Sunday night to take a commanding 3-1 series lead.

The Islanders haven't reached the conference final since the 1992-93 season.

More to come.

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The Vegas Golden Knights will start goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury in net for Game 4 on Sunday against the Vancouver Canucks, the team announced. The game is the second half of a back-to-back, following Robin Lehner's shut out of the Canucks Saturday night.

Fleury was the team's starting goaltender for the majority of the 2019-20 season before the team acquired Lehner at the trade deadline. Since the beginning of the postseason, Lehner has started nine games while Fleury has started two. This will be Fleury's first start since taking on the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 3 of the first round.

Lehner has impressed during his starts, going 7-2-0 with a .921 save percentage and 2.08 goals-against average. Fleury won both of his appearances, compiling a .886 save percentage and 2.50 goals-against average.

Earlier last week, Fleury's agent Allan Walsh showed his disdain over the fact Fleury isn't playing by tweeting out an image of a sword with Vegas head coach Peter DeBoer's name on it stabbing through Fleury's back.

Both Fleury and Lehner downplayed the image's impact, ensuring they are focused on helping their team win a Stanley Cup.

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The Carolina Hurricanes are interested in Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Frederik Andersen, reports Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.

However, Toronto won't move its starter unless an upgrade is available, and a strong group of free-agent goaltenders this offseason could factor into its decision, Friedman adds.

It was reported earlier in August that the Leafs are exploring Andersen's trade market - along with those of other players - after they were eliminated by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the qualifying round this summer.

Andersen has been the Leafs' No. 1 netminder since joining the club via trade from the Anaheim Ducks prior to the 2016-17 campaign. He's posted a .916 save percentage and 2.77 goals-against average in 244 appearances in Toronto, though he's coming off his worst season with the club, owning a .909 percentage in 52 games.

The Hurricanes drafted Andersen in 2010, but he never signed and re-entered the draft two years later. The soon-to-be 31-year-old will enter the final year of his contract and carries a $5-million cap hit.

Carolina ran with a tandem of Petr Mrazek and James Reimer in goal this past season, and the duo ranked 26th in the NHL with a combined .912 save percentage at even strength. Both netminders are under contract for the 2020-21 campaign.

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The Washington Capitals have permission to talk to Peter Laviolette in their search for a new head coach, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. Laviolette is "very much a contender," Friedman adds.

The Capitals fired previous head coach Todd Reirden shortly after being eliminated from the postseason in early August. Reirden was the head coach for two seasons and failed to get the Capitals past the first round of the playoffs both years, despite performing well during the regular season.

The Nashville Predators fired Laviolette in January during his sixth season with the team. His contract runs through the 2020-21 season, and Nashville must honor the remaining $2.5 million owed to the bench boss unless he finds a job elsewhere before the deal expires.

The 55-year-old has been head coaching in the NHL since 2001, landing with the New York Islanders, Carolina Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers, and Predators. He led three of them to a Stanley Cup Final, winning the Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006.

The veteran coach has 1,210 career games under his belt while compiling a 637-425-123 record.

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