Despite last night’s loss to Patrick Roy’s Islanders, there are reasons to be optimistic for the Montreal Canadiens.

First of all, let’s still acknowledge that the Habs picked up a very important point by coming from behind and forcing the game into overtime.

Next, all of Montreal’s other competitors in the Eastern playoff race (except, of course, the New York Islanders) lost their games.

The Columbus Blue Jackets lost to the Florida Panthers.

The New York Rangers lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Ottawa Senators lost to the Colorado Avalanche.

By earning a point, Martin St-Louis’ squad is in an even better position than they were yesterday morning in this playoff race.

Let’s focus on the positives!

Playoffs: The Canadiens close the gap with the Ottawa Senators in the standings, while distancing themselves from the New York Rangers and Columbus Blue Jackets

These are definitely very good news!

In other words, following last night’s NHL games, including the Habs’ matchup, the Montreal Canadiens have improved their chances of making the playoffs.

We love to see it!

As of today, here’s the current picture:

OTTAWA (In playoffs) – 77 points in 68 games
MONTREAL (In playoffs) – 74 points in 68 games
ISLANDERS (Out of playoffs) – 72 points in 68 games
RANGERS (Out of playoffs) – 72 points in 70 games
BLUE JACKETS (Out of playoffs) – 71 points in 68 games
RED WINGS (Out of playoffs) – 70 points in 68 games