The Islanders spent a lot of time this season trying to find the right partner for Mathew Barzal.

Without him, they’ve found a configuration that’s helped them look a little more like themselves.

Barzal missed his fifth straight game Monday against the Avalanche at UBS Arena with a lower-body injury, and it’s unclear when he’ll return. The Islanders split the first four without their star center, even turning in solid performances in the losses at Colorado on March 1 and home against the Canucks last Thursday. On Saturday against the Blues, in a 2-1 victory, the Islanders played what might have been their best game of the season. Certainly, it was the victory that most resembled their character as a team.

For 60 minutes, they played a physical, straight-line game, the kind of hockey Islanders coach Barry Trotz wants his team to play. The kind of hockey that Barzal often goes away from.

That’s not a knock on No. 13, who leads the Islanders with 37 points this season, and it’s plainly wrong to suggest the Isles are better without him. It is true, though, that his freelancing style is different from what the Islanders’ other centers play. That style is what makes Barzal so good, but in a season when the Isles have struggled to find their game, it’s been something of a catch-22 at times.

“I think with the other guys, with Mat you’ve gotta look to get open,” Trotz said. “He might not give you the puck all the time when you expect it, but he’ll get you the puck eventually, so you’re always looking to get it open. I think with our other centermen, you’re in a little more of a straight line. Advance the puck, get it back.”

Lately, the Islanders have been more successful at employing that. As they’ve said all year, they’re not a team that’s capable of regularly outscoring their opponents. Team president Lou Lamoriello built this roster to grind its way to wins.

The Islanders have often failed to do that, and thus find themselves out of the playoff race. But over the past week, you haven’t needed to squint to find the outlines of what could have been.

“Barzy’s such a dynamic player and the way he holds the puck is obviously different than a lot of guys in our lineup,” said Anders Lee, Barzal’s regular linemate. “So you go right back into playing with other guys like I said, you just try to find that chemistry right away and roll with it. And we’re with each other all the time.”

Lee missed the win over St. Louis for personal reasons, but was back in the lineup on Monday.

The Islanders’ depth at the center position has been noticeably stretched without Barzal, as Trotz has double-shifted Brock Nelson and Jean-Gabriel Pageau at times. Josh Bailey has been the third-line center, but Trotz has tried to avoid those minutes. The team’s addition of Austin Czarnik via waivers could help alleviate the issue if Barzal ends up missing extended time.

Lee, who played with Nelson and Anthony Beauvillier against Vancouver, said that switching linemates was “pretty natural.”

“We skate with each other every day,” he said. “You know everyone’s game and you just try to build that chemistry right away and build on each game. And there’s little things and little plays that, definitely, you have that communication with other guys. So you kind of gotta break through a little bit of stuff like that, but you try to find it as quick as possible.”