Bill Peters resigned Friday as head coach of the Calgary Flames, general manager Brad Treliving announced in a press conference.
Peters, who coached the Carolina Hurricanes before taking the Calgary job in 2018, stepped down following allegations of racial slurs and physical altercations made by former NHL defensemen Akim Aliu and Michal Jordan.
Aliu tweeted Monday night 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, born in Nigeria, played for Peters in 2009-10, his first professional season, with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League.
Aliu's tweets did not mention Peters by name but referred to him as the protege of Mike Babcock, the coach fired last week by the Toronto Maple Leafs. The tweets were made during the Flames' overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
A day after Aliu's tweets, Jordan tweeted that he was the kicked by Peters and said another Canes player _ who was not identified _ was punched by Peters during a game. Peters coached the Canes for four seasons before resigning to take the Calgary job and was replaced by Rod Brind'Amour, an assistant coach on Peters' staff.
Treliving said he questioned Peters about the Carolina accusations made by Jordan. Treliving, who hired Peters, also said he contacted past and current members of the Hurricanes management, and Jordan, during his review of the allegations.
The announcement of Peters' resignation came after the Canes had completed their morning skate Friday at PNC Arena for their game with the Nashville Predators and after Brind'Amour held his media availability.
"Obviously we had had to deal with something we had to deal with but I think we put that behind us pretty quickly," Brind'Amour said Friday in discussing the week's events. "It doesn't affect me. You worry that it creeps in and then the guys have to answer all the questions and it's a distraction. ... We don't want it to affect the guys' preparation and bringing in negativity to something that's long gone from here."
Brind'Amour on Wednesday had confirmed the accusations by Jordan. "The incident with Bill for sure happened, the two issues that are in question," Brind'Amour told the media in New York.
Peters, hired by Carolina in 2014 to replace the fired Kirk Muller, left the Canes after the 2017-18 season. Jordan, a native of the Czech Republic, last played for the Canes in the 2015-16 season and is now with a KHL team.
Brind'Amour has not said which player was punched by Peters. He said the matter was taken to Canes management, adding, "And then management handled it correctly and (it was) never heard of it again. ... It was definitely dealt with, in my opinion, correctly. ... We've definitely moved past that."
Ron Francis, then the Hurricanes' general manager, in July 2016 gave Peters a contract extension through the 2018-19 season. Francis, who has been hired as GM of the NHL's Seattle expansion franchise, has not responded to requests for comment.
Peters, in a letter sent Wednesday to Treliving, issued a "sincere apology" for what he called "offensive language used in a professional setting a decade ago" while also referring to his language as "hurtful and demeaning."
Peters made no mention in his letter, which was released to Canadian media outlets, of the accusations made by Jordan.
"I know that my comments have been the source of both anger and disappointment and I understand why," Peters said in the statement.
Treliving said he worked in conjunction with the NHL during his review of the Peters situation. The NHL issued a statement Friday saying its investigation still was ongoing and that meetings had been scheduled with "relevant individuals" including Aliu.
Brind'Amour, in his media scrum Tuesday at PNC Arena, was questioned about the Peters situation in Calgary and about slurs and bullying and asked, "Any evidence of that you remember as an assistant coach?"
Brind'Amour's reply: "That's a tough one. I don't think I can comment on stuff like that. First of all, I don't really know what's been said. That's not our issue to deal with. Calgary, their GM said they're looking into it. They've got to get to the bottom of it, obviously that's a serious thing. But that's their issue to deal with."
Peter Karmanos, the former majority owner of the Canes, told The Seattle Times on Wednesday that he was never informed by Francis of the physical altercation.
Peters has been replaced by interim head coach Geoff Ward, Treliving said.
