Ellis was a full participant in warmups and took lines rushes alongside his usual defense partner Roman Josi. That came after Ellis skated on his own prior to the optional morning skate Sunday.
The Predators trailed the best-of-7 series 3-2.
RELATED: [Complete Predators vs. Penguins series coverage\]
**
Ellis appeared to get injured when he got tangled with Penguins right wing Patric Hornqvist 3:20 into the second period of a 6-0 loss in Game 5 at Pittsburgh. After getting up slowly, Ellis had trouble moving and couldn't get to the bench until 3:58. A trainer appeared to work on Ellis' back before he exited to the locker room.
Ellis, 26, ranked third among defensemen in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 21 games, and his five goals ranked second among defensemen behind Josi's six. Ellis ranked fourth on the Predators averaging 23:23 in ice time per game this postseason.
The Predators made one lineup change at forward, putting Cody McLeod in for Harry Zolnierczyk. McLeod was a healthy scratch the past three games. Zolnierczyk was a healthy scratch for the first two games of the series before playing three in a row.
