Predators backup goaltender Dan Ellis will make the second start of his NHL career tonight when Nashville plays host to the Atlanta Thrashers at Sommet Center.
?I just want to get in there and try to help the guys out and try to get out of this hole we have dug ourselves in,? said Ellis, who won his NHL debut with Dallas on Feb. 8, 2004, in Los Angeles, stopping 25 of 28 shots.No. 1 goaltender Chris Mason is 2-6 in eight starts this season.
?I think we need a change right now,? Mason said. ?I am not winning any hockey games for the team, so put (Ellis) in there and hopefully he gets the guys some spark. We need something to kind of jump start us.?
Ellis spent most of his last four seasons in the American Hockey League. He signed with the Predators as a free agent this offseason and after a tough training camp competition, Ellis won the No. 2 goalie spot over Milwaukee Admirals? staple Pekka Rinne.
Ellis has appeared in three games this season, each time replacing a struggling Mason. Ellis has a 2.54 goals against average and a .921 save percentage, while Mason has a 3.73 goals against average and a .873 save percentage.
?When you have had some game experience during the year already it gives you those minutes that you can gain some confidence from,? Ellis said. ?I am just going to try to take those experiences and bring the best I can to the ice.?
Predators Coach Barry Trotz said he would make several changes to the lineup tonight, including holding out the injured Martin Gelinas, but he did not comment on the starting goaltender.
?I just want to get in there and try to help the guys out and try to get out of this hole we have dug ourselves in,? said Ellis, who won his NHL debut with Dallas on Feb. 8, 2004, in Los Angeles, stopping 25 of 28 shots.No. 1 goaltender Chris Mason is 2-6 in eight starts this season.
?I think we need a change right now,? Mason said. ?I am not winning any hockey games for the team, so put (Ellis) in there and hopefully he gets the guys some spark. We need something to kind of jump start us.?
Ellis spent most of his last four seasons in the American Hockey League. He signed with the Predators as a free agent this offseason and after a tough training camp competition, Ellis won the No. 2 goalie spot over Milwaukee Admirals? staple Pekka Rinne.
Ellis has appeared in three games this season, each time replacing a struggling Mason. Ellis has a 2.54 goals against average and a .921 save percentage, while Mason has a 3.73 goals against average and a .873 save percentage.
?When you have had some game experience during the year already it gives you those minutes that you can gain some confidence from,? Ellis said. ?I am just going to try to take those experiences and bring the best I can to the ice.?
Predators Coach Barry Trotz said he would make several changes to the lineup tonight, including holding out the injured Martin Gelinas, but he did not comment on the starting goaltender.
