Red Wings Sign Nabokov

Just when we thought we were finished with Evgeni Nabokov in North America, the whole hockey word gets turned on its head and the Red Wings add his name to the list of aged veterans they have signed to help aid their run to the Stanley Cup Finals.  Late on Thursday evening, the official word came down that Nabokov had signed a 1-year deal (until the end of the 2011 season), which would have an annual cap hit of $570,000.  This would then work out to about $250,000 in actual cap space taken, since the deal would be prorated through the first half of the year.

Much like the deals that were given to both Marek Svatos and Kyle Wellwood from the St. Louis Blues, Nabokov will have to clear waivers, which will start on Friday and his 24-hour period will conclude at Noon on Saturday.  If Nabokov goes unclaimed, he will join the Red Wings for the remainder of the regular season, but there is a lot of talk that he will get claimed, also like Svatos and Wellwood.

With the second waiver draft only right around the corner, the idea of adding one of the top regular season goalies of the last decade has to be fairly appealing to many.  Nabokov will likely get a long look through the next couple weeks, being compared against Pekka Rinne, who is also up for selection in the second draft.  I would have to figure that both goalies will go in this draft, but I'm curious to see who goes first.