Brady Tkachuk records his first career hat trick.

It was a big day for the Ottawa Senators captain.

On Saturday forward Brady Tkachuk and his Senators took on the defending Stanley Cup Champions the Tampa Bay Lightning and although you would have expected the Lightning to be the favorites coming into this one, they did not look the part. The Senators thoroughly dominated on the scoreboard in this one, eventually shutting out the Lightning by a score of 4 - 0, and it was thanks in large part to the efforts of the captain.

Tkachuk was out on the ice for the first goal of the game but it was Josh Norris who scored that one, recording his team leading 12th goal of the season.

It wasn't Lightning starter Andrei Vasilevskiy who started in goal but nonetheless the Lightning got a solid performance from backup goaltender Brian Elliott despite what the score might lead you to believe. The Senators got their second goal of the game courtesy of the captain, but it was after a pair of outstanding saves from Elliott.

Once again the Lightning would be victimized on the power play as Tkachuk tipped in his 2nd goal of the game to give the Senators a commanding 3 - 0 lead.

Last but not least came the hat trick goal itself. Tkachuk actually had a pretty good chance at this one early on with the empty net, but failed to capitalize on that chance. Not to be deterred however he managed to find the back of the net from downtown after an accurate shot from all the way back in his own zone.

This is the first hat trick of Brady Tkachuk's career in the National Hockey League and that has to feel pretty good considering he was endorsed by the team this year when they named him their captain. The fact that it came against one of the top teams in the league likely makes it that much sweeter.