"Evgeni Nabokov appears ready to return to the National Hockey League -- either with the New York Islanders, who own his rights, or to a team to which the Isles trade him.

And according to a Twitter posting from Canadian-based reported James Mirtle, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly has told the Islanders they won't have to risk sending Nabokov through waivers before trading him.

Nabokov, 36, spent most of last season in limbo. After leaving the NHL as an unrestricted free agent who couldn't find a deal, he signed with Russia's Kontintenal Hockey League -- only to get out of his $24 million contract.

He decided to return to the NHL, and the Detroit Red Wings signed him to a cut-rate $570,000 contract. But before he could join the Wings, he had to go through waivers -- and the Islanders grabbed him."