I'm a bit more optimistic....I think futures trading will reign in the volatility substantially and would be ambivalent to call double the price by end of 2018. Lightstream network could push it that way I think.
My understanding of the futures connection is that it is one way, the futures are a derivative of BTC, but BTC isn't much affected by the futures' movement. So even if HF money goes long on futures (the only hope for hodlers), that doesn't do much to push BTC up. I might be wrong on this one, I would like to hear more input.
The LN is just a dream at this point, too much talk, nothing is getting done. LTC has the LN already, people could just switch to it if they want cheap and quick tx, instead of waiting for consensus. I mean if we are talking about actual users.
Bitcoin is an excellent social experiment: how the lack of regulation and a governing body stops invention because of self interest.