Dallas middle school principal, 7 other district employees to retire

Scranton Prep softball team off to fast start in this week’s local sports roundup

When Clark Seymour dropped the gloves with Lehigh Valley&#8217;s Oliver Lauridsen on April 8, he did it to send a message.But it wasn&#8217;t necessarily meant for Lauridsen.The Penguins led the game 1-0 at the time, and Seymour noticed that the momentum was still pretty even.He figured a fight could change that and show his coaches that he is willing to do whatever it takes to help the team win.&#8220;That&#8217;s part of my game and things like that go a long way with a coach,&#8221; Seymour said. &#8220;They see a player willing to do whatever it takes to get the guys going.&#8221;Seymour, who was drafted by Pittsburgh in the fifth round in 2012, has spent most of his rookie season in Wheeling but has earned a couple brief call-ups to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.With his latest opportunity, which has lasted five games, Seymour hopes it sticks.With injuries depleting the blue line in Pittsburgh and call-ups opening up spots in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Seymour&#8217;s opportunity has never been better.&#8220;It&#8217;s a great chance for myself to prove to the organization what I have to offer,&#8221; he said.And there&#8217;s a lot the 6-foot-4, 220-pound Seymour can offer.Head coach John Hynes said Seymour&#8217;s size and strength are his foundation, and lately he&#8217;s put it to good use.&#8220;He&#8217;s a big guy that uses his reach and plays big. It&#8217;s nice to have a guy like that and Clark&#8217;s developed that a little bit better this year,&#8221; Hynes said. &#8220;He&#8217;s on track to be able to make an impact the rest of the year here with us and into the playoffs.&#8221;For Seymour, using his size means more than just a willingness to drop the gloves. It&#8217;s about using his reach to swat pucks away, break up plays, punish opponents in the corners and even use his long stride to get the puck up ice.&#8220;There&#8217;s a couple of components to it,&#8221; Seymour said. &#8220;I was drafted for my size and physical play and they want to see me use it.&#8221;Now that Seymour is doing just that, he&#8217;s hoping for an extended stay with the Penguins.&#8220;The more time you spend with a team you get comfortable not only with the systems but the city in general,&#8221; he said. &#8220;You feel more at home and you can get into a groove.&#8221;NOTEBOOK- Seymour suffered a scare in Tuesday&#8217;s practice when he hurt his leg and had to be helped off the ice. Afterwards, Hynes said he didn&#8217;t think it was anything serious. &#8220;It looked a little bit worse on the ice. He should be good,&#8221; Hynes said.- With D Scott Harrington, D Brian Dumoulin and F Scott Wilson called up to Pittsburgh, the Penguins are hoping for the return of a few injured regulars. D Barry Goers could be the first. Hynes said he is day-to-day and possible to return this weekend.- W Bryan Rust, D Reid McNeill and C Nick Drazenovic are still week-to-week, while Hynes said LW Anton Zlobin won&#8217;t be back for the playoffs.

Clark Seymour playing to his strength for the Wilkes-Barrre/Scranton Penguins