Nashville goalie Dan Ellis set a franchise-record shutout streak of 233 minutes and 39 seconds last month. (Jimmy Jeong/Associated Press)

The man most responsible for Nashville's late push into the Western Conference playoff picture has been goaltender Dan Ellis, who allowed just two goals during a spectacular span of four games where his team went 3-0-1.

Ellis enjoyed a franchise-record shutout streak at 233 minutes and 39 seconds and averaged 38 saves per game during his hot streak and was named the NHL's second star for the week ending March 30.

The torrid stretch was fortuitous as Nashville brass summoned Pekka Rinne from their minor-league team in mid-March and were prepared to give him a shot, but Rinne's equipment was late to arrive. It gave Ellis one more start, the first of his four-game streak.

After toiling in the Dallas system, Ellis joined the Predators this year as a free agent, beating out Rinne in training camp to join Chris Mason as the goalie tandem. Ellis is as an unrestricted free agent and could be in line for a big raise next season from the $500,000 US he made this year, wherever he ends up playing.

Ellis has a 22-10-3 record with six shutouts and a 2.35 goals-against average and .924 save percentage. At 27, he is slightly too old under league rules for Calder Trophy consideration as the NHL's top rookie.

Regardless, it's been a remarkable first NHL season for a player who rode the buses from Nebraska, Utah, Idaho and Iowa to achieve his dream. With just two games left to play and a playoff berth on the line, Ellis spoke to CBCSports.ca:

How do you explain the week you and the Predators enjoyed?

I was seeing the puck well but I think it was more of a case that our D were allowing me to see more. They were pushing guys off to bad angle shots, the shots from the point I was able to see all the way in, they were clearing away rebounds, they were boxing guys out so there couldn't be second or third opportunities.

How frustrating was it for you when the team recalled Pekka Rinne from the minors earlier this month?

Well, I was definitely frustrated. You pour things out for the team and you help get them into a playoff position and all of a sudden a couple games don't go your way and they're making drastic changes like that, it doesn't sit well with you.

Things worked out that I was able to get back in the net, Pekka's plane was a little bit delayed and that afforded me the opportunity to play against Chicago and I just wanted to set aside the frustration and focus on the task at hand.

The future of the NHL in Nashville was in doubt last year and several players left in the off-season through trades and free agency. A lot of hockey observers had low expectations for the Predators this season. Is it motivating trying to prove the naysayers wrong?

When you lose all those players and all of a sudden people write you off and say you're going to be moving and all these other things, they pick you in polls not even to finish in the playoffs, not even to finish top 10 in your conference, it is a motivating factor. You gain some motivation from those types of rankings and from those doubters, and you want to prove people wrong.

Our team, even though we lost a lot of skill, we gained a little bit more grit and a little bit more character. The resiliency and the character is what's shining through and not so much the skill level. We've learned to win and succeed as a group of 20 and not just rely on certain individuals.

How do you deal with the perception many might have that while it might be a nice story if the Predators make the playoffs, it's a longshot that the team can make a lengthy playoff run?

We realize if we hang on to that eighth spot we're going to play Detroit, and Detroit is a team we've actually matched up very well against this year. We've played some really good games against them all season long, almost all the games have been one-goal games maybe one or two have been more than a one-goal game. [Nashville went 3-3-2 against the Red Wings]

We've had some strong battles, so we know we have the confidence to play against a team like that. We know if we can get in those playoffs just like Edmonton two years ago, an eighth seed, you realize if you're good enough to make the playoffs you're good enough to win the Stanley Cup.

We just have to have that belief within ourselves. Just because no one else believes in us, we just have to believe that much more.

You took an unconventional path to pro hockey, heading to the U.S. to play junior hockey.

U.S. junior hockey was sort of the last kick at the can. It was an opportunity to basically see the U.S. for free ... and the Ontario junior hockey league wasn't working out, I was cut from the Owen Sound Platers two straight training camps, so I kind of had to start looking the college way and wasn't getting any scholarship offers so I figured this was an opportunity to maybe see something different. I went out to Omaha and things worked out really well right from the get-go. I was able to get a college scholarship within a month of being there, getting a full ride to Nebraska-Omaha and got drafted at the end of the season [by Dallas in 2000].

Has Nashville brought up the subject of next year yet?

No, I don't really have any idea what's happening contract-wise. Right now my main thing is just to play the best I can. Obviously I'd like to stick around here if it's possible, but I also realize that they have two goalies on one-way contracts next year, so there's a little bit of a logjam here in Nashville.

You've played in some hockey outposts, but you also had a stint with the Hamilton Bulldogs in 2004-05. Any surprise that some of your former Hamilton teammates are helping the Montreal Canadiens reach such heights this season?

That's no surprise at all. When I was there in Hamilton, I personally didn't have a great season at all, but I was able watch guys like Higgy [Chris Higgins] and Pleky [Tomas Plekanec] and [Andrei] Kostitsyn and ... they had absolutely excellent talent. You look at a lot of the guys from that team; a lot of them have played in the National Hockey League now. Almost all of the Dallas [Stars] guys that were there have played or are in the NHL now, and a number of guys from the Montreal system are up.

Higgy, he was always extremely talented, had a lot of character, so he looked like a born leader. Plekanec was blessed with a ton of skill, as was Kostitsyn, [who had] one of the hardest shots I ever played against.