The encouraging chemistry Mathew Barzal is building with Islanders

It wasn’t just what Mathew Barzal did on Thursday night in his first regular-season game after surgery to fix a season-ending kneecap issue last year: skate as if he hadn’t missed a beat, drive play, pick up an assist. 

It was what he didn’t do in the Islanders season opener that made this just as notable. 

Not once did he circle around the offensive zone with the puck on his stick, waiting in vain for someone to come open as the play died out — a sight that’s become emblematic of both Barzal’s precipitous talent and the way it often goes to waste. And he did not, at least at five-on-five, take a single shift with Bo Horvat, even when the Islanders were chasing an eventual 4-3 loss to Pittsburgh late in regulation. 

Coach Patrick Roy and the Islanders might be just as committed to keeping those two separate as they looked in the preseason. And Barzal, whose line with Kyle Palmieri and Anders Lee was by far the team’s best in the season’s first 60 minutes, might be up for the challenge of moving back to center. 

“I think as a team, we made a point where we want to move it fast, make the other team’s defense move around and you have to pick guys up,” Palmieri told The Post before the Islanders opened their home slate against the Capitals on Saturday. “I think when you hold onto it too long — I think [Barzal’s] obviously very gifted and talented in a way, he can sit there and protect the puck forever — [but] I think as a line, we want to make a point of attacking. 

“So sometimes, it takes a second or two where he has an edge on a guy and maybe draws somebody else out of coverage where it’ll open me or Leesy up, or one of our point men. But I think the other night, we just made a point of: ‘Hey, let’s get the puck and start attacking it, early on.’ ” 

Against the Penguins, that worked to a T. The trio racked up 10 shots and eight scoring chances, per Natural Stat Trick’s tracking, and scored off the rush when Barzal fed Palmieri early in the second period. 

Most encouraging within that was Barzal, historically one of the hardest players in the NHL for linemates to build chemistry with due to the unique way he dominates the puck, looking completely on the same page with his teammates. 

If the move back to center is going to be more than a temporary measure, that is an absolute must. 

Part of the reason Lou Lamoriello gave up a package that included a first-round pick and Aatu Raty, who was at the time considered the best prospect in the Islanders system, to bring in Horvat was the belief that he could handle playing with Barzal. 

That proved correct, and all through preseason, whenever he was asked about his new slot in the lineup, Barzal made no secret of how much he’d like to keep playing with Horvat. If the time the two have spent together has helped build some more teammate-friendly elements into Barzal’s game, though, then it will pay off for the Islanders in droves — regardless of whether they pair Barzal and Horvat again. 

“Did I want to take pressure off of this [move back to center?] Maybe,” coach Patrick Roy said, when it was brought up that he’d stressed it would take time for Barzal to get comfortable there. “But you know what, I think when you’ve been playing on the wing for a certain time — a center can play on the wing, a wing cannot play center. So Barzy was a centerman, moved to the wing, then he’s back at center. Maybe the adaptation is quicker than I thought.”