Peters in limbo after accusations of using racial slurs
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Calgary Flames general manager Brad Treliving says coach Bill Peters remains on the staff, but wasn’t certain whether he’d be behind the bench for the next game.
The team and the National Hockey League are both investigating an allegation that Peters directed racial slurs at a player 10 years ago when the two were in the minors. Akim Aliu, a Nigerian-born player, says Peters “dropped the N bomb several times” in a dressing room during his rookie year.
Peters has not commented on the allegation. Treliving apologized for not having many definitive answers at practice in Buffalo on Tuesday, a day before the Flames play the Sabres.
“I haven’t had the chance to sit down with Bill or our people internally to talk about this and get to the bottom of it,” Treliving said. “We take these matters very, very seriously.”
Peters was not at the arena while his players were on the ice. The GM says he had stayed at the team’s hotel. Flames associate coach Geoff Ward oversaw practice, which included a brief huddle with the players at centre ice.
Treliving understands the seriousness of the allegations and called them “repugnant” if true, while adding it’s his responsibility to find out exactly what happened.
The NHL called the alleged behaviour “repugnant and unacceptable.” The league added it will have no further comment until it looks into what happened more thoroughly.
Aliu, who is black, tweeted
Monday that during his time with the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs, Peters “dropped the N bomb several times towards me in the dressing room in my rookie year because he didn’t like my choice of music.” Aliu said he “rebelled against him,” and Peters responded by asking Chicago Blackhawks executives John McDonough and Stan Bowman to send Aliu to a lower minor league level.
The tweet did not name Peters specifically, but referred to a “protege” of fired Toronto coach Mike Babcock’s who is now in Calgary. Babcock has been a mentor to Peters since Babcock coached him in college.
The Blackhawks issued a statement saying nothing had previously been brought to their attention regarding Peters and Aliu before Monday. The team added it had no effect on any player personnel decisions involving Aliu.
Email and voice messages left with Aliu have not been returned to The Associated Press.
Later Tuesday, former NHL defenceman Michal Jordan alleged Peters kicked him while the two were with the Carolina Hurricanes.
“Never wish anything bad to the person but you get what you deserve Bill,” Jordan said on Twitter. “After years making it to the NHL had experience with the worst coach ever by far. Kicking me and punching other player to the head during the game then pretending like nothing happened...couldnt believe my eyes what can happen in the best league.
“Happy that I dont have to go through that stuff on daily basis anymore.”
The allegations come with the Flames slumping. They’re 1-5-2 in their past eight.
Peters was hired by Calgary after spending four seasons coaching the Carolina Hurricanes. The 54-year-old made the jump to Rockford after leading the Western Hockey League Spokane Chiefs to a Memorial Cup championship in 2008.
Aliu played under Peters during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons. He was demoted to the Toledo Walleye of the ECHL during the 2009-10 season. Aliu, who was born in Africa but raised in Ukraine and Canada, later played seven NHL games over two seasons with Calgary. The 30-year-old Aliu has had a transient career since being selected by Chicago in the second round of the 2007 draft.