Cornell Grad Scrivens Shining in Net for NHL's Kings

It was a tale of two college goaltenders on Friday night at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. It was also the first time the New Jersey Devils had faced the Los Angeles Kings since Game 6 of the 2012 Stanley Cup Final in California, in which the Kings won their first-ever NHL title.

The Kings improved to 5-2 in their last seven outings overall versus New Jersey, but it wasn’t former UMass netminder and 2012 Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jonathan Quick doing the honors this time. Cornell graduate Ben Scrivens, who came to L.A. earlier this year from Toronto, outdueled former Boston College backstop Cory Schneider in the Kings’ 2-0 victory, making 26 saves to Schneider’s 19 stops while allowing a third-period goal to stand up as the game-winner.

Scrivens, 27, who went 65-37-13 in 117 games for Cornell from 2006 to 2010, led the Big Red to two NCAA Tournament appearances and an ECAC Championship during his tenure in Ithaca. The Spruce Grove, Alta. native also recorded 20 career shutouts, including seven whitewashes apiece during both his junior and senior campaigns.

Scrivens made 37 saves on Sunday in the Kings’ 1-0 win against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden, and is 3-0-0 in the L.A. net since Quick succumbed to a groin injury earlier this month. He is also 4-1-1 so far for the season for the Kings (14-6-1), who will host Tampa Bay on Tuesday night, and was named the NHL's First Star of the Week, according to NBC Sports ProHockeyTalk.