Newest Washington Capital Dany Sabourin played in the Boston Bruins organization last year.

Last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins signed Brent Johnson, the steady, fan-favorite goalie who didn’t quite fit into the Washington rotation. Today, at 9 a.m., the Washington Capitals announced they have signed former Pittsburgh Penguins backup goalie, Dany Sabourin.

Although both Sabourin and Johnson have been sent to the minor leagues after brief auditions with the Vancouver Canucks, and both have spent at least a decade playing goalie for a living, the similarities end there. Johnson got a break early in his career with the St. Louis Blues, back when that team’s defense included giants Chris Pronger and Al McInnis. As a result, Johnson has a stellar stat-sheet that has kept him afloat for the rest of his career. Sabourin, on the other hand, got his career started on a Pittsburgh Penguins team whose best defensive defenseman was Sergei Gonchar.

Sabourin, 30, has shown he has the talent to win in the NHL, posting two shutouts and sixteen wins in a couple seasons with the Penguins. Generally, Sabourin couldn’t get a chance to start because Pittsburgh had already anointed Marc-André Fleury as its goaltender for life. Still, there were times when Sabourin, a journeyman in his prime, simply looked like a better goalie than the young Fleury.

After Pittsburgh picked up Johnson last year, Sabourin signed with the Boston Bruins, only to end up starting with the Bruins’ AHL affiliate, as Boston prospect Tuuka Rask dueled with Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas for the Boston starting job.