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WINNIPEG, Manitoba — The line separating the Blues from the Winnipeg Jets in the first two games of their series to open the Stanley Cup playoffs has been both very narrow and a mile wide.

The Blues hung close with the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Jets on Monday night, with the game tied entering the third period, only to pay for a defensive lapse and lose 2-1 in Game 2 of their best-of-seven series. Game 1 was also a one-goal game before an empty-net goal for the Jets.

But with margin of victory not a factor in the playoffs, the Blues trail the series two games to none regardless of how close the scores have been, with the teams now heading to ӣ����Ƶ for Game 3 on Thursday at Enterprise Center. At present, only one of those teams knows it will definitely be heading back to Winnipeg after Game 4.

“Winnipeg has made one more play than us,” said Blues coach Jim Montgomery. “Both games. Shots are dead even, so they're just making one more play, and their best players are making them.”

“It’s close,” said Blues captain Brayden Schenn. “We had some chances, and they were able to capitalize on their chances in the third period so far. They did their job at home, and now it’s our turn to go to the Enterprise, where we’ve had success, in front of our fans, and do our job.”

The Blues took a lead into the third period in Game 1 and went in even in Game 2, though it took just 1:43 for the Jets to get the game-winner, with Kyle Connor scoring from between the hash marks on a pass from behind the net. (It didn’t help that goaltender Jordan Binnington got his stick caught on Colton Parayko’s leg and dropped it, making it tougher to stop Connor’s shot.)

"I thought we had good puck pressure on the play up top," Montgomery said, "and I think that play should be killed behind the net by us. And then we got to be able to cover. I mean, we want to force the puck up high versus allowing (Connor) to get a shot from the hash marks."

The Blues had a better third period than in Game 1 (five shots on goal compared to two), but they were outscored in the period for the second game in a row and didn’t get much out of a power play midway through the period, just as they didn’t get much from two power plays they had in the second period. In almost eight minutes of power-play time in the game, they managed just six shots on goal.

“Yeah probably not as much shot volume as we needed to get second and third chances,” Schenn said, “or just to tire them out. That’s something that we’re going to have to look at it. It’s a series of adjustment and the power play has to do a better job to come up big for us in key moments.”

“I don't think we were shot focused enough,” Montgomery said. “I do think we had some really good looks, and we didn't execute either the pass or, more importantly, the shots. And I thought, (Connor) Hellebuyck made a couple of big-time saves.”

Winnipeg got goals from Mark Scheifele and Connor, who were the Jets’ top two scorers in the regular season. For Connor, it was second game-winner in as many games. The Blues, meanwhile, got their one goal from the youngest and newest player on the ice, Jimmy Snuggerud, who scored with two seconds remaining in the first period to tie the game. Pavel Buchnevich made a nice pass through traffic to the faceoff circle to Hellebuyck’s left, where Snuggerud settled it and beat the clock.

“I tried to pick a corner and fortunately enough it went in, but at the end of the day we lost and it's no fun losing,” said Snuggerud, who became the third Blue 20 or younger to score in the playoffs in the past 15 years.

Snuggerud also figured in the Jets’ first goal, colliding with Binnington after Binnington blocked a shot by Scheifele and the puck appeared to go in off Snuggerud’s skate.

“I feel like (I was) just trying to backcheck (Scheifele), play the body on him,” Snuggerud said, “and pucks happen to hit skates and stuff, and it just went in. So it's an unfortunate bounce, but it happens.”

The goal came on a Blues' line shift, which left a tired Nick Leddy behind to have to deal with Scheifele. Leddy slipped, and Scheifele was able to get around him and to the net.

"Four out of five guys changed and then we didn't execute," Montgomery said. "We have a plan when we have wholesale changes like that, and we didn't execute very well defending that."

And those are the kind of plays that have decided the first two games of the series. 

"That's how hockey goes," said Snuggerud. "I feel like it's that one play that can make the the difference in the game, and it was unlucky for us that they got it.”

Four of Winnipeg’s past five goals have come from within 10 feet, and two of the six non-empty-net goals have gone in off of Blues.

“I do think they’ve been harder at the net front than we have offensively,” Montgomery said. “And that’s net hunger. Our net hunger needs to increase.”

“Yeah, get inside a little bit more, I would say,” Schenn said. “Hellebuyck made some saves tonight. If we just do a little bit better job of getting traffic, and pucks and people to the net for some second opportunities."