Linus Ullmark snaps in practice, then comes back later to clean up his mess

The Ottawa Senators will once again be without the services of captain Brady Tkachuk for this evening's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The captain is officially out with the upper body injury that he suffered last week and did not even skate with the team at their game-day ice-time earlier today.

It wasn't a completely uneventful game-day skate in Ottawa today though...

Goaltender Linus Ullmark reportedly snapped during practice and smashed his goalie stick on his way off the ice. Being a good guy though, Ullmark returned just minutes later with a broom to clean up his mess.

Ullmark is truly a gem of a human being. Protect him at all costs, Sens fans.

Read below for our earlier report on Tkachuk's injury.

The Ottawa Senators continue their march toward the Stanley Cup Playoffs this evening but they'll have to do so without the services of captain Brady Tkachuk.

Senators head coach Travis Green announced today that Tkachuk will be out of the lineup for tonight's game against the Buffalo Sabres.

Green added that Tkachuk got hurt after taking a hard hit from Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Ryan Graves during the Sens' 1-0 OT loss this past weekend. Tkachuk left the ice in the 2nd period after taking the hit but returned to the bench for the 3rd period but played sparingly in the final frame.

Here's the play in question:

No word yet on how long Tkachuk will be out of the lineup, but it's safe to assume that he's considered 'day to day' at this point. 

The Senators (84 points) are currently seven points up on the Montreal Canadiens (77 points) for the final Wild Card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. They have a bit of breathing room between themselves and the likes of the New York Rangers (77 points) and the Columbus Blue Jackets (75 points) for the final playoff spot, but they can ill afford a slide in the standings right now. A healthy Tkachuk will go a long ways towards determining this team's fate in the standings.