When the Stars gave Antonio Stranges an assignment, he added extra credit

FRISCO, Texas --When Stars prospect Antonio Stranges took the world by storm with his signature "mohawk" skating style earlier in the year, he quickly found out just how fast word gets around.

In a game against Saginaw on March 18, 2022, the 20-year-old forward went coast to coast utilizing his incredible edge- and footwork to blow past the initial forechecker at his own blueline, sidestep another in the neutral zone and split two Spirit players at the offensive blueline before going stick side on the goalie.
Watch: Youtube Video
The goal went viral, setting social media ablaze with a potential CHL goal of the year candidate.
But he wasn't done.
Just seven days later, Stranges did it again, this time against Owen Sound. Corralling the puck behind his own net, Stranges gained speed by going "10-and-2" with the open positioning of his feet. He slipped past a forechecker along the boards in front of his own bench, dangled past a defenseman at the blueline and fended off another before burying a backhander.
Watch: Youtube Video
His DMs never had a chance to recover from the first goal.
"Some of them were pretty funny," said Stranges, on the comments and messages he received. "It's a different skating style, so people always have their own opinion on it. It was pretty cool. A lot of kids around the world picked things up from it. I still get tagged on Instagram about kids trying it out. It's definitely pretty cool. It's something I use to my advantage. It's definitely a huge part of my game, so kids might be picking up on it, too."

Ironically, both goals came in the same month he signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Stars - a contract that begins in the 2022-23 season.
Stranges is wrapping up his second development camp with the Stars after the club picked him in the fourth round (123rd overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. The Plymouth, Michigan native is coming of a career year with the Knights, setting personal bests in goals (31), assists (53) and points (84) in 60 regular-season games. He more than doubled his 2019-20 numbers in assists and points and improved upon a 19-goal campaign.
It was a big step forward in his junior hockey career, which included a seven-game playoff series against Kitchener.
"We finished a little earlier than we wanted to, but that's the way of the road sometimes," he said. "It was a good year. I learned lot. Talking with Dallas, they gave me an assignment and I worked on it. I really wanted to get that contract. I'm super happy to still be here."
When asked if his mohawks were included Dallas' offseason assignment, Stranges couldn't help but chuckle.
"That was extra credit," he said with a big smile. "That just happened."

Even though he's only 20, Stranges said he takes pride in being a positive influence on the younger players at development camp.
"Just trying to be a leader out here," he said. "Take home a lot of what I'm learning here. Just coming to the rink and being a pro. Hydrating, eating well, stretching, warming up and all that stuff. Things that go a long way in the long run."
Back in April, Stars director of player personnel Rich Peverley said the thing that stood out the most about Stranges was his improvement on both sides of the puck.
"He's probably got the best 10-and-2 skating I've ever seen," he said. "It's really incredible what he can do. It makes him very hard to check. But the thing about Antonio is he's really come along in his two-way game. He listened to what we wanted. If you're going to play professional hockey and be successful, you have to be trusted by the coaches."
Stranges understood what he needed to improve, and he proved it on the ice.
"He's done everything we've asked and everything London's asked," said Peverley. "He's gone from a guy who wouldn't see the ice in the last five minutes of the game to the guy on the ice at the end of the game. He's realizing that if he wants to be successful, he has to be trusted in 5-on-5 and in your own zone. He's adjusted to that, and he's come a long way."
It won't be long before Stranges heads back home for summer training, but he won't forget his time at development camp.
"It's great," he said. "We're a pretty tight group. From the second I got here from the airport, it seemed like everyone was already getting along. We've been doing a lot together. We went to a soccer game on Wednesday] and were joking around. It's really fun. Great group of guys. I like when it's small like this - only 21 players - so you get close and make a lot of friendships. It's always fun when you're down here."
*This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.*
***Kyle Shohara** is the Digital Manager for DallasStars.com and writes about the Stars/NHL. Follow him on Twitter **[@kyleshohara*.