Peters apologizes to Flames in letter to GM

BUFFALO — Calgary Flames head coach Bill Peters apologized to his team’s general manager in a letter Wednesday night, a day after a former player alleged that Peters directed racist comments at him when they were both in the minors 10 years ago.

Peters was not with the Flames in Buffalo for their game against the Sabres on Wednesday.

In a letter to Flames GM Brad Treliving that was released to multiple news outlets, Peters said he used “offensive language ... in a professional setting a decade ago.”

Peters called it an “isolated and immediately regrettable incident.”

“The statement was made in a moment of frustration and does not reflect my personal values,” Peters wrote. “After the incident, I was rightfully challenged about my use of language, and I immediately returned to the dressing room to apologize to the team. I have regretted the incident since it happened, and I now also apologize to anyone negatively affected by my words.”

Former NHLer, Akim Aliu, tweeted Tuesday that Peters had directed racial slurs toward him when both were with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League in 2009-10.

Born in Nigeria and raised in Ukraine and Canada, Aliu never referred to Peters by name, but used Calgary’s airport code “YYC” when writing about the alleged coach who “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.”

Another former player alleged Peters kicked him and punched a teammate when they were all with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour, who spent four seasons behind Carolina’s bench with Peters, confirmed his former boss confronted players in a physical manner.

“It for sure happened, the two issues that are in question,” Brind’Amour told reporters.