Bold Predictions for the Chicago Blackhawks as the 2014-15 NHL Season Begins

A look at the Chicago Blackhawks' roster, the team's past achievements and their high expectations means that there is only one prediction that truly matters for this team:

Will they win the Stanley Cup for the third time in six seasons?

We will get to that prediction as the Blackhawks prepare for their season opener in Dallas. However, before the Blackhawks get to the most important part of the season—the Stanley Cup playoffs—they have an 82-game regular season in front of them.

Here's a look at how we think the season will play out.

Corey Crawford's Steady Play Will Lead to a Strong Regular Season

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Corey Crawford was a vital performer in the Blackhawks' Stanley Cup run in 2013, and he did a fine job in last year's playoffs as they got to overtime of the seventh game in the Western Conference Final before losing to the Los Angeles Kings.

However, Crawford often is the subject of complaints from Blackhawks fans. He is not a perfect goalie, and he may not be in the same class as Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins, Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers or Jonathan Quick of the Los Angeles Kings.

Crawford had a tendency to give up one bad goal in most games last year. He was often bailed out because the Blackhawks are so talented on the offensive end and were the second-highest scoring team in the league.

But his critics often failed to realize that he often made spectacular saves on shots that many goalies wouldn't have been able to stop.

Crawford was most definitely an asset last year as he had a 32-16-10 record, a 2.26 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage.

The prediction here is that Crawford will exceed those regular-season figures. The goalie should have a 2.00 GAA and his save percentage will be close to the .925 mark. 

The Blackhawks will have another strong season, and Crawford will be a big part of their winning formula.

Brandon Saad Emerges as a Legitimate Star

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Brandon Saad is a gifted athlete who already has two full seasons under his belt with the Chicago Blackhawks.

The 21-year-old Saad has flashed his ability on many occasions throughout the last two years. Saad scored 19 goals and had 28 assists last year, and that's an excellent jumping-off point for the 2014-15 season.

Saad is going to play on the team's second line with Patrick Kane and center Andrew Shaw. (It looked like veteran Brad Richards would have the center position on that line, but head coach Joel Quenneville has apparently decided to go with Shaw.)

Saad may be as fast as Kane, although nobody in the game can stickhandle like Kane. If the Kane-Shaw-Saad line shows some chemistry from the start of the season—and that unit played well together at various points last year—Saad will have a legitimate chance to be an All-Star this year.

He has the tools to score 30 goals and 70 points this year, and he will join the team's roll call of superstars.

Brad Richards Will Not Be with the Blackhawks at the End of the Season

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We touched on it in the previous slide.

Andrew Shaw, not Brad Richards, will be the No. 2 center as the Blackhawks begin the 2014-15 season.

The Blackhawks signed Richards during free agency because they wanted an accomplished, veteran center to work with Kane and Saad.

Richards certainly fit that description, but the 34-year-old center had been benched/demoted in each of the last two playoff seasons with the New York Rangers.

The Blackhawks welcomed Richards in training camp, but they needed to see a certain amount of speed and energy from him if they were going to keep him on the No. 2 line with Kane and Saad. They did not get that from him in training camp.

Richards will still get an opportunity to play, but he may not be the player they hoped he was when they signed him during the summer.

He will be off the Blackhawks' roster by the time the playoffs begin.

Power Play Steps Up

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The Blackhawks have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to offensive talent.

Quenneville can roll out Jonathan Toews, Kane, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook any time he wants. The Blackhawks almost always have the edge in talent and skill every time they step on the ice.

That's what makes it so hard to fathom why they have such an ordinary power play. The Blackhawks ranked 10th out of 30 teams last year with the man advantage, and while that's not awful, there's no reason they shouldn't have a top-three power-play unit in 2014-15.

New assistant coach Kevin Dineen will work with the Blackhawks' power play, and he will have a positive impact. Look for the Blackhawks to show far more consistency with the man advantage as they finish with the No. 2 power play in the league behind Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals.

Blackhawks Reach Stanley Cup Final, but ...

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The Blackhawks will have a strong regular season and live up to expectations.

The talent level ranks with the two or three best teams in the league, the coaching is exceptional and the team is driven to win the Stanley Cup before it faces a new round of salary-cap issues prior to the 2015-16 season.

They will overcome the gauntlet that is the Western Conference playoffs. If they face the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings, they will find a way to overcome Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter and Drew Doughty. The lucky bounce will go the Blackhawks' way this time.

They will get back to the Stanley Cup Final, and they will see a familiar foe.

The Boston Bruins will emerge from the far-less-powerful Eastern Conference as the other finalist. After beating the Bruins in the championship round two years ago, the Blackhawks will have to watch the Bruins skate around the United Center with the Stanley Cup this time around.

It will be painful for Toews, Kane and Keith, but turnabout is fair play since the Blackhawks celebrated on the Bruins' home ice two years ago.

The Bruins will beat the Blackhawks in seven games in the Stanley Cup Final.