Bold Predictions for the Rest of the 2015-16 NHL Season

Disclaimer: There is no such thing as a crystal ball that can actually foretell the future. If there was, the predictions you are about to read wouldn't be so bold.

And anyone can predict Patrick Kane's imminent Art Ross Trophy, linemate Artemi Panarin's Calder victory or the Washington Capitals' Presidents' Trophy. Let's take a riskier approach and try to call a few final-week shots in the dark. Unexpected finishes in the point races, a division title still up for grabs or the fate of an award vote are all fair game.

Not all of these are going to happen. In fact, by the very definition of this slideshow's title, it would be slightly shocking if half of them did play out. But that's what makes this prognostication fun.

Click ahead for a few bold predictions for the rest of the 2015-16 NHL season.

The Tampa Bay Lightning Will Win the Atlantic Division Title

Michael Dwyer/Associated Press

For most of the meaty parts of this season, the upstart Florida Panthers have led the Atlantic Division race. And with an impressive stretch of play through February and March (going 13-5-3 so far), the Boston Bruins have jumped into the lead of what's looking like a down-to-the-wire finish.

But it's the Tampa Bay Lightning—the sleeping giants—who will claim the division crown when the dust settles. The Bolts rattled off nine straight wins from mid-February to early March and looked confident once again after the Stanley Cup hangover and Steven Stamkos contract/trade drama seemed to suck the life out of the club for so much of the season.

In terms of talent, the Lightning are still near the top of the Eastern Conference, so watch out for them these last few weeks.

Patrick Kane Will Sweep the Scoring Trophies

Billy Hurst/Associated Press

It's not bold to predict Patrick Kane as the winner of the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's regular-season scoring leader. He's got a double-digit lead over the next pack of competitors, and barring injury or unprecedented production from the Dallas Stars' Jamie Benn or Tyler Seguin, Kane should easily be able to hang on there.

The Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, however, is more of a long shot.

It's not that Kane is all that far behind current leader Alex Ovechkin. The lead is just a few goals. But Ovechkin is a traditionally strong finisher—netting eight goals in his last 11 games down the stretch last season—and Kane is already working on a career high as he approaches 40 goals for the first time. Kane had two goals in his last dozen games before a season-ending injury last year.

This year, he has eight in his last 15. With a hunger to make this the most unforgettable regular season of his career, Kane should be a man possessed down the stretch.

The Detroit Red Wings' Playoff Streak Will End

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

Owners of the longest active NHL streak, the Detroit Red Wings have made the playoffs in 24 consecutive seasons. It's the fourth-longest run in league history.

The Wings are sitting in the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference and have a three-point lead over their closest competition—the Philadelphia Flyers—but the Pennsylvania crew has a pair of games in hand. They go head-to-head on Tuesday night in what will be a huge swing game in the battle between the two teams. They meet again on April 6, and depending on what happens between now and then, it could be an elimination.

It's a time of transition in Detroit, and as good as some of the young players have looked at times, the group is feeling the effects of an aging core led by Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk while the more raw talent goes through growing pains and inconsistencies.

It was a great run.

The Toronto Maple Leafs Will Finish Last...but Not Draft First Overall

Alan Diaz/Associated Press

Icing an American Hockey League roster will almost assuredly land the Toronto Maple Leafs in the cellar of the NHL standings come the end of the 82-game schedule. It will offer them the highest odds of picking first in the spring's draft—where they could land the highly coveted Auston Matthews.

But the bold prediction here is that the Edmonton Oilers once again land the top spot via the draft lottery, enraging legions of NHL fans as if it's an annual tradition. The Oilers "earned" the right to draft Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in 2010 and 2011, respectively, then won the draft lottery in 2012 to draft Nail Yakupov and again in 2015 to steal Connor McDavid.

The odds certainly don't favor the Oilers to claim a fifth first overall pick in seven years, but since when do odds matter when it comes to the Edmonton franchise?

Carey Price Won't Play Again This Season

Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

As the Carey Price saga drags on, we're running out of weeks for the reigning Hart Trophy winner to suit up again this season.

Bold prediction: Amid all the chatter about whether he plays this week, the fact that will eventually come out is Price will be kept away from game action the rest of the way in order to ensure he remains as healthy as possible for next season.

Montreal Canadiens beat writer Pat Hickey (via Gino Reda of TSN) recently predicted a return to the net for Price this week. Teammate Paul Byron also told media members his return was imminent (via Arpon Basu of LNH.com). But coach Michel Therrien refuted both of those statements, via TSN.

There is still lots of time for Price to come back from an injured right knee—the severity of which has never been disclosed—but is there a point to him returning when the team is hopelessly out of the playoff race and the potential for reinjury is ramped up with the intensity this late in the year?

Either Connor McDavid or Shayne Gostisbehere Will Crash the Calder Party

Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

Artemi Panarin is the runaway Calder Trophy favorite. Jack Eichel, Max Domi and Dylan Larkin are the second wave. Then there are the incredible freshmen without a fighting chance. Or will one of these guys overcome the shortage of games to join the short list of finalists at the end of the year?

Shayne Gostisbehere didn't even start the season with the Philadelphia Flyers, but the 22-year-old defenseman has been dynamite since being called up from the AHL in mid-November. He has 15 goals and 38 points in 49 games. That projects to a 64-point season over an 82-game schedule, which would put him among the top 10 at his position in the NHL.

McDavid's point-per-game average is topped by only Kane and Benn. If not for a broken clavicle that sidelined him for three months, he'd likely be among the league's leaders as a rookie and the Calder favorite even ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks' Panarin.

The impressive, albeit more brief, seasons by these two rookie stars should have made a big enough impact among the voters' brains to gain some top-five votes. Maybe, just maybe, enough to make the top three against all odds.

Brent Burns Will Pass Erik Karlsson in the Blue-Line Scoring Race

Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

This might be the most bold prediction of all. The Ottawa Senators' Erik Karlsson is still in the mix for Art Ross Trophy runner-up and is set to post one of the top 30 single-season point totals of all time. Brent Burns of the San Jose Sharks is still eight points behind.

Perhaps he will run out of time, but with 14 games remaining, Burns is trending way up in his production, while Karlsson has been a little stale.

Burns has five goals and 11 points in his past seven games—a 1.57 point-per-game pace. Karlsson has one goal and five points in his last 11 games—a .71 per-game average—and has fewer games remaining.

It's unfair to take the small sample sizes for a projection, but for the sake of this bold prediction, if we use those averages over the final number of games for each player, Burns would finish with 84 points, and Karlsson would end up with 79.

Head Coach Barry Trotz Finally Gets the Jack Adams but Not the Stanley Cup

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

Barry Trotz is one of the best coaches ever to lead an NHL franchise. He consistently pushed the cash- and talent-depleted Nashville Predators roster to be better than the sum of its parts and was the stabilizing force of the expansion franchise for 15 years. But with cap constraints making Nashville a city incapable of a miracle on ice, Trotz was never duly recognized for his accomplishments.

He has never won the Stanley Cup. In fact, he's only been to the second round three times. But the surprise is he has yet to be given the Jack Adams Award for the NHL's Coach of the Year honors.

The bold prediction here is Trotz finally gets that nod. Unfortunately, despite more talent on the Capitals bench than he has ever paced behind, Trotz won't get his hands on the Stanley Cup. That honor will go to someone else Caps fans are familiar with.

The last slide will shed some light on that.

The Anaheim Ducks Will Hoist the Stanley Cup

Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

No one would have guessed after the first few months of the NHL season that these Anaheim Ducks would even be in the playoff hunt, never mind have a shot at the Pacific Division title. But that's what the Ducks' post-Christmas play has earned them.

The team has gone 25-7-2 since Christmas, and the momentum of this sturdy team topped up with talent will be hard to stop. So while you might expect the Blackhawks, Capitals or Stars to haul in the heavy metal in June, it's the Ducks we'd be putting any of our spare dollars on at their potential odds.

The Ducks have made solid moves this season and have lots of balance up front, on defense and especially in goal, with the tandem of John Gibson and Frederik Andersen among the best in the league. Is it the most bold prediction here? No. But it's not like the Ducks are the popular pick just yet.

All statistics via NHL.com.