In the first two games of their series with the St. Louis Blues, the Winnipeg Jets managed to overcome some not-so-great starts to win both contests.

But in Game 3 in St. Louis, they couldn’t dig themselves out of an early hole, falling 7-2 as their series lead was cut in half.

The Jets surrendered three goals in the first period and four more in the final frame to chase Connor Hellebuyck from the game as the Blues won their 13th straight home game going back to February 23.

“It’s one game,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “We lost one game. Whether it’s 7-2 or 1-nothing, we lost one game in the series.

“We lost the game in the first period. Scored two goals in the first three minutes, got on our heels, crowd got behind them. We were terrible in the first period. Game was over in the first.”

The Jets have now lost four consecutive Game 3’s and are just 3-9 all-time in the pivotal third game of the series.

Pavel Buchnevich scored only 48 seconds into the game before adding another a little over two minutes later and he recorded a hat trick for a four point effort. Cam Fowler had five points with a goal and four helpers, while Robert Thomas finished with four assists.

The Blues registered the first seven shots on goal of the game and outshot Winnipeg 15-7 in the opening period.

“We didn’t execute in the first period and especially in the first 10 minutes,” said Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey. “You lose that game in overtime, you lose the game how we did, it’s the same result. Playoffs are all about turning the page, learning lessons and improving as the series goes on.

“So we’ll look at the areas we need to improve. Obviously the start as I referenced, and turn the page, and I think that’s important.”

David Gustafsson and Neal Pionk scored the goals for the Jets in the loss.

Dylan DeMelo missed the game with an illness as Colin Miller made his series debut in his absence.

With the Jets trailing by three goals in the second period, Jordan Binnington made a glove save on Cole Perfetti, but it appeared his trapper was on the other side of the goal line.

The play was reviewed, but it was determined there was no conclusive evidence to call it a goal. Perfetti disagreed with the decision which would have made it a two-goal game.

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“I saw video on the bench that looked pretty evident,” Perfetti said. “I don’t know what angle they saw. From what I understand they said they didn’t have an angle of it and meanwhile it was on the scoreboard and their crowd kinda went ah. Based on their reaction I thought it was in the net. I thought you could see the puck on it’s side in his glove, and his glove in the net. I don’t know what else you gotta do.

“I thought it was a goal, but who knows. I don’t really know anymore.”

“There was no clearcut picture that showed the puck was over the red line,” said Arniel. “It may have looked like it. There was lots of things that made it look like it was, but there was no perfect evidence that it was 100 per cent over the line.

After a quiet first two games, Buchnevich got the scoring started just 48 seconds in. He got free near the crease and a cross-ice feed went off his skate and fluttered in the air towards the net. If the puck crossed the line, it would have likely been disallowed for a kicking motion, but he got his stick on the puck just before it entered the net, a good goal to give the Blues the early lead.

The Blues found themselves on a power play just a few minutes later and Buchnevich scored again, this time redirecting a shot-pass from Thomas past Hellebuyck at the 3:11 mark to make it 2-0.

St. Louis continued to dominate as the period rolled along and while the Jets tried to steady themselves late in the first, another goal from St. Louis really took the wind out of Winnipeg’s sails.

It began as a simple breakout up the ice for the Blues as Thomas carried the puck into the Winnipeg end but nobody picked up Fowler as he streaked down the middle, breezing past Alex Iafallo before collecting a pass from Thomas and wiring it past Hellebuyck to make it 3-0 at the 15:51 mark of the first.

Neither team scored in the second period, though Winnipeg had several power play looks to try and get back in the game and on one of them, they thought they had a goal.

Right around the midway point of the second, Binnington appeared to have robbed Perfetti with a great glove save, though Perfetti immediately pointed at the net, suggesting that Binnington’s glove was behind the goal line when the puck entered it.

After a nearly five-minute review that appeared to show the puck over the line, officials let the call on the ice stand, with the NHL saying that “there was no conclusive video evidence to overturn the Referees’ call on the ice.”

There didn’t seem to be much hope for Winnipeg but just over four minutes into the third, their fourth line finally found a way to get one past Binnington. Jaret Anderson-Dolan drove the puck wide into the Blues’ end, drawing two defenders to him and freeing up space for Gustafsson in the slot. He took a pass from Anderson-Dolan and buried it to make it 3-1 with 15:29 left.

But any hope generated by that goal was short-lived because of a mistake by Hellebuyck.

After the Blues dumped the puck in, Hellebuyck went behind the net to play it but as he tried to clear the puck. A forechecking Thomas knocked it off his stick and right to Buchnevich, who deposited the puck into an open net for his third goal of the night just 53 seconds after the Gustafsson goal.

St. Louis added another on a 5-on-3 with 12:04 remaining as Jordan Kyrou got in on the fun, firing a wrister high past Hellebuyck through a screen.

The nightmare night for the Jets wasn’t over yet.

The Blues made it 6-2 after Luke Schenn was hammered by a forechecking Radek Faksa, who took the puck away from Schenn and sent a pass cross-ice to Jake Neighbours, whose pass to the slot was steered past Hellebuyck by a streaking Alexey Toropchenko, ending the presumptive Vezina Trophy winner’s night with 9:28 left in the third.

Winnipeg did get one back on the power play with 7:10 left as Pionk beat Binnington with a one-timer from the point, but the Blues then scored another power play goal with 3:43 left as Colton Parayko slammed a one-timer past Eric Comrie on the first shot that Comrie faced after entering the game.

It was also the fourth goal for the Blues on just five shots in the third.

St. Louis would finish the night with seven goals on 28 shots with Hellebuyck allowing six on 25 shots.

Binnington picked up the win, having to make just 16 saves in the game.

The Blues also went 3-for-8 on the power play and now have six power play goals in the series to just two for the Jets.

The Jets’ top-line, after a great start to the series, was held off the scoresheet. Kyle Connor finished the game with a minus-four rating while Iafallo and Mark Scheifele were each minus-three.

The Jets will look to rebound in Game 4 of the series Sunday afternoon in St. Louis. The puck drops just after noon with pregame coverage on 680 CJOB beginning at 10 a.m.