Name: Robert Nilsson
Position: LW
Shoots: Left
Height: 5-11
Weight: 181 lbs
Birthdate: 2001-10-19
Hometown: Calgary
Acquired:
1st rd, 15th overall, 2003 NHL Entry Draft
Robert Nilsson
Profile Contributed By: Bill Bennett


History

Robert Nilsson is the well known and the most hyped prospect of all the draft eligible Swedes entering the 2002-03 NHL Entry Draft. His progress has been closely monitored for several years and he has received extra attention due to the fact that he is the son of former NHL-star Kent Nilsson, nowadays working as scout for the Edmonton Oilers. Two years ago Robert Nilsson was considered among the very best in his age group; his stock has however dropped since then. After a very strong 00/01 season with Leksand in the junior league (42 points in 23 games) he was expected to establish himself with Leksand’s senior team in the 2nd-tier league the following season. Robert had however some problems adjusting to the game and spent also the 01/02 mostly in the junior league, although he “only” managed to score 31 points in 22 games that season. Because of Robert’s rather poor 01/02 campaign not a lot of experts believed that he was ready to step in and contribute right away this season, being a rookie in the elite league. Nilsson did prove them wrong though. He started out on the fourth line but with the departure of former NHLer Mike Stapleton Nilsson moved up to the third line and saw more ice-time. He showed immediately he was capable of and started to produce offensively. When the regular season was over Robert had broken Markus Näslund’s old record for points by a junior-B player (18 years and under) with 8 goals and 13 assists in 41 games. Those numbers made him also the highest scoring rookie of the year. During the U20 Championships this past winter team Sweden had a very poor showing but Nilsson who played mostly against players two years older than him, did pretty well scoring 4 goals and 2 assists in 6 games. He was also expected to compete in the U18 Championships in April, but broke his ankle in an exhibition game and missed the tourney.
 
Talent Analysis

Most experts agree that Nilsson is the most talented Swedish player since the Sedins and pretty much on par with Peter Forsberg and Markus Näslund when they were Nilsson’s age. It should be noted however that Näslund and especially Forsberg developed their games dramatically the year after they were drafted and we can’t take for granted that Nilsson’s development will turn out just as well. Nilsson is extremely gifted offensively. He can do pretty much anything with the puck and combines a great skating technique with fine technical skills, excellent passes and tremendous hockey sense. He is more of a play-maker than a sniper but is still capable of putting in the net, although he could work some with his finishing skills anyway. While father Kent Nilsson wasn’t really recognized as a physical player his son is actually quite fond of using his body. He likes to throw a good hit every game and plays with a lot of grit in the offensive zone. When comparing Nilsson to other young players his maturity and strength stands out. He is totally fearless out on the ice and plays well through traffic. Looking at Robert’s weaknesses only one really stands out; his defensive game. Just like his father, Robert also prefers to play offense and his defensive coverage could definitely use some improvement. Another topic that has been discussed during the season is Nilsson’s consistency problems. All through the season he has scored his points during a number of stretches and not been contributing on regular basis. If Nilsson actually has a problem being consistent remains to be seen because we have to have in mind that when you are 17, 18 – years old and playing against men you are expected to have slow periods. Also Robert wasn’t a regular during the entire season and played on various different lines which could also be a reason why his scoring wasn’t too consistent. Nilsson is not a giant. With his 5-10, 5-11 frame he is a rather smallish forward but luckily he does not shy away from traffic and physical contact and has already showed that he has no problems playing against older and larger opponents.
Future

There have been some loose rumours about Robert wanting to move over to North America and continue his progress in the CHL. It is however likely that those roumours are taken out of thin air since Nilsson extended his contract with Leksand in April and is already an established elite league player. It is very possibly that Robert will have huge breakout season next year and if it goes really well he could put up 35-40 points. He is as skilled as they come and will be the big star of the Swedish U20-team in the U20 championships this winter. We can also expect that Nilsson will get a shot to play with “Tre Kronor” (the Swedish national team) if he plays convincing in the elite league. Robert could be ready to play his first NHL-season already next year. It is however not too common that Swedish players leave that early for the NHL and likely Leksand’s top prospect will remain in Sweden for two years at least. With his excellent offensive skills Nilsson has the potential to become a first line player in the NHL with the ability to score 80-90 points. There are however still aspects that needs to be improved.
Stats

 
Year         Team       League  GP   G   A  PTS  PIM 


2003-2004 Leksand       SEL 


2002-2003 Team Sweden   WJC-20   6   4   2   6    4 


2002-2003 Leksand       SEL     41   8  13  21   10 


2001-2002 Leksand       SEL2    14   1   4   5    8 


2001-2002 Leksand J-20 SupElit  22  13  18  31   24 


2001-2002 Team Sweden   WJC-18   8   2   3   5    8 


2000-2001 Team Sweden   WJC-18   6   2   0   2    0 


2000-2001 Leksand  J18  Allsven  4   6   3   9    6 


2000-2001 Leksand J-20 SuperEli 23  14  28  42   26

 

 

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