By JOHN GLENNON
Staff Writer

The Predators' budding rivalry with the Vancouver Canucks has provided a perfect chance to illustrate the toughness and self-reliant nature of Nashville defenseman Karlis Skrastins.

Two weeks ago in Vancouver, monstrous Canuck forward Todd Bertuzzi ? seeking to free himself up in front of the Predators' net ? dropped Skrastins to the ice with a cross-check, collected a pass and scored.

It was fairly clear that Bertuzzi's move was illegal, but Skrastins refused to point fingers afterward.

''I just need to be stronger on my skates,'' he said.

Six days ago, the hot-tempered Bertuzzi went ballistic in the closing seconds of the Canucks' 3-2 loss to the Predators, throwing punches to the face of a surprised Skrastins and nearly breaking his nose.

Predators Coach Barry Trotz called for Bertuzzi to be suspended, but not surprisingly, Skrastins cast no blame at anyone but himself.

''It's just part of the game,'' he said. ''I didn't see the replay, but I'm not blaming him. I have to be smarter and stronger in those situations.''

The shot to the nose might have sidelined some players, but Skrastins stepped back into the lineup two nights later, without a visor or any added protection.

He played in his 234th consecutive game, and his streak ? now at 236 ? is the fifth-longest active one in the league.

''I'm not thinking about [the streak] all the time or anything,'' Skrastins said. ''But it's just a good feeling. It's a tough game and you can get injuries every time, so maybe I'm getting lucky.''

The unheralded, defensive-minded game of Skrastins should get a little more attention by the end of this season, when the NHL returns to keeping statistics for categories like blocked shots and hits.

The league did away with a number of those statistics at the start of this season, fearing the subjective nature of keeping them was leading to inflated numbers and contract demands.

But a grievance filed by the NHL Players Association means the statistics will once again be kept. Don't be surprised to see Skrastins among the league leaders in blocked shots.

''I think [the statistics] are good for guys who don't score goals or get a lot of points,'' he said. ''You can watch your stats after the game and see what you did good or how hard you played. That's part of the game, too.''