NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB Medicine Hat Tigers forward Carter Chorney and captain Daniel Baker watch a pre-game video on the jumbotron after being honoured ahead of the final game of the season April 15 against the Edmonton Oil Kings at Co-op Place.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
Daniel Baker and Carter Chorney finished their WHL careers together and are starting their university hockey careers together.
The duo of former Medicine Hat Tigers has committed to play for the Griffins at MacEwan University in Edmonton this upcoming USports season. Both finished their 20-year-old season with the Tigers after knowing one another through hockey camps in minor hockey.
Both Baker and Chorney are from the Edmonton area and are excited for the chance to play closer to home.
“I’ve been away from home for a few years playing now and to be able to play close to home and stay with my family and have them come watch me as much as they can, it’s a pretty good opportunity for me,” Baker said.
“It’s a new chapter of my life and I’m just kind of excited to get started going here and kind of see what is ahead,” Chorney said.
Baker suited up for 213 regular season games, all with the Tigers, and the defencemen amassed 89 points. He missed the latter half of his final WHL season with an upper body injury.
Chorney produced 64 points in 219 career games at the WHL level playing for the Tigers, Spokane Chiefs, Swift Current Broncos and Regina Pats.
Baker said he was looking forward to playing with Chorney again and the forward expressed the same desire.
“It’s pretty exciting to be with Bakes again, he’s an unbelievable guy, and it was upsetting his season ended short,” Chorney said. “So hopefully we can have a full year here and have a good year and with the other guys. I’m excited to get going, excited to be with the team and get the ball rolling.”
Both guys already know some of the Griffins’ returning players and a few of their other newly signed players, something Chorney says will make joining a new team easier.
Tigers associate coach Joe Frazer said it’s special to see the two friends continue playing hockey together and is happy to see them utilizing their WHL scholarship package.
“To see them use their scholarships they received from the league and then be able to continue on playing, it’s great to see,” Frazer said.
For each season played in the WHL, a player is awarded with a one-year post-secondary scholarship, which includes tuition, compulsory fees and required textbooks. Both players will be enrolled in MacEwan’s business program. Baker said he chose that path because his brother started taking it at the school and he wanted to follow him. Chorney said he chose the program and is looking forward to seeing where it takes him.
Neither of the 21-year-olds said they remember how to study and said they are embracing the new challenge.
“It’s something I’m definitely going to have to put some time into,” Chorney said with a laugh.
Both are looking forward to the change of pace of school hockey, going from playing 68 games in a season and having 10-plus-hour bus rides, to playing on weekends and having the week for school and practices.
They join recent Tigers alumni Corson Hopwo, who committed to Acadia University in Nova Scotia earlier this off-season. Baker said the farthest they will go this season is B.C. but said he would be excited for a potential finals matchup against his former teammate.
“It would be unreal to beat Hops of course,” Baker said.
Baker, who served as Tiger captain last season, is the first WHL captain MacEwan has had.
“It was a great opportunity for me to be able to be captain and I definitely learned a lot, it was a tough season,” Baker said. “I’m very grateful for the opportunity the coaches gave me to be a leader, I think it’s trying to carry that forward to my next team.”
The Griffins’ season starts Sept. 30 with a home contest against the University of Regina Cougars.
