This may be an unsubstantiated generalization, but anytime a team gives up four goals in the second period, well … that's usually a sign things aren't going well for the club in question.

The Winnipeg Jets are that team right now.

It's not so much that the Jets fell asleep in the second period against the Minnesota Wild and eventually dropped a 5-3 decision to the Central Division rival down the road. No, it's more about the errors they continue to make on the defensive end of the ice, the chances they continue to give up, and how this has been a recurring theme through the first 16 games of the season.

Winnipeg still gives up way too many high-quality scoring chances and while they've seen some above-average goaltending through a handful of games in October to stem the tide of those opportunities against, the puck is finding the back of the net these days.

Not that the goaltenders had any help Tuesday.

Two of the Wild goals in the second period were scored on the breakaway, with Thomas Vanek blasting a slap shot past Ondrej Pavelec and Erik Haula snapping a shot into the Winnipeg net 89 seconds later.

On both goals, the Jets defencemen, seemingly glued to the offensive blue-line, lost track of a Minnesota forward behind them, and before one could scream "defensive awareness" at their television set, the Wild were up 3-1.

Tack on two more for the Wild and the game was essentially done for the road team.

Is the book out on how to beat the Jets aggressive, push-the-play forward attack? Tuesday's game felt a lot like the Montreal game at the start of the month, when the Canadiens continued to beat the Winnipeg defence with long passes and speed through the middle of the ice.

Even the lowly Philadelphia Flyers seems to slow the Jets' attack down with some smart play in the neutral zone. The Jets need to own that zone to construct their brand of game. They are unable to build lately.

Balanced offence?

Another concern: where is the balanced offence that was trumpeted at the start of the year?

Mark Scheifele has just two goals in his last 13 games. Mathieu Perreault hasn't scored in his last 10 games. And Nikolaj Ehlers, who drew rave reviews in October, hasn't found the back of the net in seven. This is Winnipeg's second line, and it hasn't been close to good enough lately.

Bryan Little (two goals Tuesday), Blake Wheeler (he scored the other) and Andrew Ladd have been carrying the Jets lately. It's nice to know some things never change.

The Jets have one win in their last five games (1-3-1). That one win was against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have been near the bottom of the overall standings since the start of October.

To make matters worse, two Central teams Winnipeg is battling for position with — Nashville and St. Louis — won Tuesday night.

Guess what? The Jets have stops in those cities over the next six days. Minnesota was supposed to be the easy one in this four-game Central road trip.

This November swing through the division has been billed as "season-defining" for the Jets. They've feasted on teams from the East (for the most part) prior to this point of the schedule, and have yet to see an extended run of play through the list of teams they'll have to beat to make the playoffs.

Winnipeg qualified for the post-season a year ago thanks in part to its 16-8-5 record in the division. Tuesday's loss drops them to 2-2-0 this year.

The Jets next see action on Thursday, when they visit the Dallas Stars.