sandra nilsson

EDMONTON - It didn't take Robert Nilsson long to figure out there was going to be a price to pay for his shortcomings.

Once the third period got underway and the left-winger found his butt parked on the Edmonton Oilers bench, he knew it was going to be a long night -- not just because the game went into overtime and then into another shoot-out, but because he had no idea what the next day would bring.

But when he returned to Rexall Place on Sunday, Nilsson found himself back on the top line, skating alongside Shawn Horcoff and Ales Hemsky.

Robert Nilsson, left, is knocked off his feet against the Canucks in a recent game.
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Font:****"It's up to me. I need to find a way to keep my consistency up," he said after the practice session. "At least I'm not out of the lineup. I have another chance.

"But I played bad, real bad -- and right from the start of the game."

Nilsson, who played just seven shifts in the 3-2 shootout victory over the Chicago Blackhawks, will get a shot to make amends tonight when the Oilers host the Columbus Blue Jackets. In part, it's because he has the tools to complete the dynamic duo but, more importantly, there aren't many other options available to head coach Craig MacTavish.

Hemsky and Horcoff have been stellar of late, Sam Gagner and Andrew Cogliano have proven to be a good fit with Dustin Penner and the checking line -- the Geoff Sanderson-Marty Reasoner-Kyle Brodziak unit -- has been so good that MacTavish is hesitant to break it up. At least not yet.

So Nilsson, who has shown a propensity to let his performance tail off, will get another chance to prove himself.

He has already made one trip back to the American Hockey League this season because he couldn't sustain any consistency, so he is well aware of the alternatives.

"Sandy (Sanderson) is outplaying a lot of guys on the left side so what you wrestle with is having a good fourth line, or taking an element or two away from that line to try and get a second or third line," MacTavish said. "We have two-thirds of a first line and a fourth line. I am pretty happy with the way the kids are playing, too, so outside of that, it's up to the players to start stepping up and making a case for themselves.

"I don't have a lot of alternatives right now -- outside of trying to get Robert playing better. For him it's all skating," MacTavish continued. "If he's able to skate and his legs are feeling good then he's able to play there.

"It's just getting pretty predictable. He comes up after playing a bunch of games in the American League and his legs are good, his confidence is good, then it starts to wane.

"He just needs to start well because it is a stretch to have a guy with those numbers playing with your best players. We're just not getting a lot of productivity out of the left side."
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