It would be a stretch to start calling Peter Budaj an "ironman," especially when 19 other goalies have played more games.

But it would not be an exaggeration to refer to him as the Avalanche's No. 1 man in the crease.

Assuming Budaj starts in Wednesday night's pivotal game against the Calgary Flames at the Pepsi Center, it would be his 47th appearance of the season, 17 more than Jose Theodore.

Counting his time in junior and minor league hockey, it also would be the second highest number of games for Budaj in his career. Budaj played in more games just once, in 2004-05, when he made 59 appearances for the Hershey (Pa.) Bears in the American Hockey League.

The Avalanche is in a desperate fight for a Western Conference playoff berth, and coach Joel Quenneville has been turning to Budaj for just about every game.

Budaj has played six games in a row, nine of the past 10, 14 of 16, 17 of 20 and 29 of 33 since Dec. 29.

"He's 24 years old," teammate Ian Laperriere said. "He shouldn't be tired."

If Budaj is feeling fatigued, his play would say otherwise because he was at his best in the six-game stretch that ended Sunday with a 3-2 overtime loss to Minnesota.

The Avalanche went 5-0-1, and Budaj posted a 1.80 goals-against average with one shutout and a .928 saves percentage.

"I feel pretty good," he said. "I try and take care of my body off the ice. We still have 13 games remaining, so there's no excuses being tired or anything. You just have to take care of your body and just get ready because those 13 games are going to be live or die."

As well as Budaj has been performing, he credits his teammates for their improved play in front of him.

"It's not just me," he said. "Overall, you can see that our team is playing much better defensively. We don't allow as many (scoring) chances as we did before, and that helps a goaltender a lot.

"The credit is to the whole team because we are playing great defensive hockey right now. We don't allow many odd-man rushes, and that's very important."

The Avalanche might not have gotten to overtime Sunday and earned a valuable point if Budaj hadn't made a couple of terrific saves at the end of regulation when the Wild was on a power play.

Budaj also made a huge stop against Marian Gaborik before Brent Burns popped in the rebound with 18.9 seconds left to prevent the game from going to a shootout.

"Peter was real good," Quenne-ville said. "Several times they were loading up for one-timers in the high slot and he was square to the puck. He made several key saves and got it to overtime. He made a great save on Gaborik right before the goal. He's been moving real well and following the puck and trapping rebounds."

It's the kind of goaltending the Avalanche will need the rest of the way for any chance to get into the postseason, which is why Budaj is being so conscientious about keeping himself sharp.

"If your body is a little tired, I think you get tired mentally also," he said. "You need to keep in shape physically and you need to try and get as much sleep as possible. When you're tired, you can't focus as much. You have to do everything you can to be ready for the game."

Budaj's workload is similar to that of his rookie season last year, when he started 14 consecutive games down the stretch after David Aebischer was traded and Theodore was recovering from a broken heel.

"He works hard," Laperriere said. "He works hard in practice and after practice. When you work hard, good things happen to you, and he's the best example on our team.

"He's been playing great. He wants the challenge and he's welcoming that and he's playing well for us. You talk to the kid and he's never tired; he's hyper and he just wants to be in the net. Every night he gives his best effort and gives us a chance to win."

sadowskir@RockyMountainNews.com