Calgary Flames head coach Bill Peters has resigned, the team announced at a news conference Friday in Calgary.
The Flames announced assistant coach Geoff Ward will be the interim head coach.
The resignation comes after former NHL player Akim Aliu tweeted Monday night that he had a racial slur directed his way by a former coach in 2009-10 while a member of the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs.
The 30-year-old, who is Black, never referred to Peters by name, but did reference Calgary’s airport code “YYC” when writing about the alleged coach involved in the matter.
Born in Nigeria and raised in Ukraine and Canada, Aliu tweeted Monday: “Not very surprising the things we’re hearing about Babcock. Apple doesn’t fall far from the Tree, same sort of deal with his protege in YYC. 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.”
On Friday, the NHL released a statement regarding Peters’ resignation days after saying it would join the Flames in looking at the allegations made by Aliu.
“The League has been in regular communication with the Calgary Flames management and our review of this serious matter is ongoing,” the NHL said, adding it has scheduled interviews with “relevant individuals,” including Aliu.
On Tuesday, former NHL defenceman Michal Jordan alleged Peters kicked him while the two were with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Jordan detailed two accounts of physical abuse by Peters during their time in Carolina.
“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…couldn’t believe my eyes what can happen in the best league.
“Happy that I don’t have to go through that stuff on daily basis anymore.”
Former Hurricanes assistant and current Carolina head coach Rod Brind’Amour confirmed Wednesday that Jordan’s story was accurate, but added: “It was definitely dealt with, in my opinion, correctly.”
The initial accusation from Aliu came while Calgary was on the ice in Pittsburgh facing the Penguins. Peters wasn’t made available to reporters after the game.
Aliu told TSN on Tuesday that Peters used a racial slur repeatedly to complain about his choice of pre-game music. Two Rockford players confirmed Aliu’s account to TSN.
Peters did not lead Tuesday’s practice and wasn’t behind the bench for the Flames on Wednesday night against the Buffalo Sabres.
Peters issued an apology in a letter addressed to Flames general manager Brad Treliving on Wednesday night.
The apology did not mention Aliu, who released his own statement on Twitter on Thursday calling Peters’ letter “misleading, insincere and concerning.”
A native of Three Hills, Alta., Peters is 198-175-64 in five-plus seasons as an NHL head coach with Calgary and the Carolina Hurricanes. The 53-year-old’s only trip to the playoffs was during last spring’s five-game upset at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche after the Flames finished second in the NHL’s overall standings with 107 points.
Calgary currently sits 12-12-4, tied with Vegas for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
Aliu’s allegation comes on the heels of reported controversial tactics used on rookies by Mike Babcock, who was fired by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Nov. 20.
The Toronto Sun and Postmedia reported Babcock asked a rookie to draw up list during the 2016-17 season that ranked his teammates from hardest- to least-hardest working. Babcock then shared that list with some of the veterans at the bottom of the ledger.
It was later revealed the rookie in question was star winger Mitch Marner, who struggled at times under Babcock during his first season, but put up a career-high 94 points in 2018-19.
Peters served as Babcock’s assistant with the Western Hockey League’s Spokane Chiefs in the late 1990s. He was Spokane’s head coach for three seasons beginning in 2005-06 and was Rockford’s bench boss from 2008-09 to 2010-11.
He rejoined Babcock as an assistant with the Detroit Red Wings from 2011-12 to 2013-14 before getting the top job in Carolina.
Internationally, Peters led Canada’s gold-medal winning teams at the 2008 under-18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament and the 2016 world championships. He was an assistant at the 2015 world and on Babcock’s staff at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. Peters was also bench boss of the Canadian squad at the 2018 worlds.
Aliu, who played 14 games for the ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears in 2018-19, suited up for 48 games under Peters with the IceHogs in 2009-10, and 13 more with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye.
The IceHogs are the AHL affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks, who selected Aliu with the 56th pick in the 2007 NHL draft out of the Ontario Hockey League.
At the time of the alleged incident, John McDonough was president of the Blackhawks, while Stan Bowman was general manager. Both men are still in their posts with the team.
The Blackhawks issued a statement saying nothing had previously been brought to their attention regarding Peters and Aliu before Monday. The team added it did not affect any player personnel decisions involving Aliu.
The six-foot-four, 225-pound Aliu played seven career games in the NHL, all with the Flames, between 2011 and 2013.
He was involved in an on-ice altercation with then-teammate Steve Downie in September 2005 when both were members of the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires following a hazing incident Aliu refused to take part in on the team bus.
The fallout resulted in a 40-game suspension for Windsor head coach and general manager Moe Mantha, who was subsequently fired.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Nov. 29, 2019.
With files from HuffPost Canada