Former Blackhawks Goalie Sells Northbrook House

NORTHBROOK, IL - The exodus of former Chicago professional athletes from Northbrook continued last month when one-time Chicago Blackhawks goalie Nikolai Khabibulin sold his six-bedroom, 4,446-square-foot house for $600,000.

Khabibulin paid $735,000 for the house in 2013 after he was signed to a one-year contract with the Blackhawks to backup current goalie Corey Crawford, according to Chicago Tribune Elite Street reports.

But Khabibulin, known to some as “The Bulin Wall,” is remembered most by Chicago hockey fans for his time in the net from 2005 to 2009, when he was the primary goaltender in the Blackhawks’ first run to the conference finals in 14 years. Khabibulin lost his job prior to the next season to Antti Niemi, who went on to lead the Blackhawks to their first Stanley Cup championship in 49 years in 2010.

Khabibulin, who retired in 2014, won a Stanley Cup as the starting goaltender for the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004.

The Northbrook house he just sold was built in 1997 and has six baths, high ceilings and a finished basement.

Two other former Chicago athletes have also looked to unload properties in Northbrook over the past year. Former Chicago Bull Andres Nocioni was successful, selling his house in April; while Luol Deng, another former Bull, listed his Northbrook mansion in August.

more via Chicago Tribune Elite Street

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