Bill Peters not with Flames at practice amid allegations of using racial slur
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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 NHL 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.
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 center 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 says it is investigating the allegations. The league added it will have no further comment until it looks into what happened more thoroughly.
Aliu tweeted Monday that 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.
Flames general manager Brad Treliving said the team is investigating the allegations Aliu raised during Calgary’s overtime loss at Pittsburgh. Peters was not made available following Monday night’s game.