Akim Aliu's former coach calls out the disgruntled defenseman.

Recently former National Hockey League defenseman Akim Aliu has been featured prominently in the hockey media. Although almost never making it onto the radar as far as most hockey fans are concerned Aliu came to prominence when he accused now former Calgary Flames head coach Bill Peters of engaging in racist behavior and making racist comments directed at him. Given how Peters responded to those accusations and given what happened in the aftermath of those accusations there was no doubt that Aliu was telling the truth. Aliu blamed racism in hockey for his inability to find success in the sport, but it is important to remember there are always two sides to every story. 

In a recent Czech interview one of Aliu's former coaches Vladimir Kyhos, his most recent coach in the 2019 - 2020 season and a former NHL draft pick himself, was asked to share his thoughts on the disgruntled defenseman and frankly did not have many kind words to share on the topic. Kyhos was quick to admit that he liked what he saw on video when it came to Aliu but also added that when it came to his personal character there was not much positive to say. Kyhos even went so far as to speculate that the reason Aliu was never able remain with any single team for very long was his poor attitude. 

Here's what Kyhos had to say in Czech, translated to English:

"What was it like with him ... In the first place, we were looking for a player to strengthen our staff," admitted Kyhos as per Hokej. "But everything was practically dismantled. So we got to that name, we saw some footage from his game and we liked it. Unfortunately, his character was not very good. That's probably why he changed so many different clubs, and he wasn't satisfied with any of them. When I read those articles, it's everywhere that they didn't like him, but nowhere does it solve why they didn't like him. I have already experienced more players to whom I showed something in the video and they did not take it. They were able to tell me that this and the situation was to blame, but not themselves. Aliu was like that, too. That he scored a goal was nice, but then maybe he caused two. Just like in the match with Třinec. We had him well played out, but he then made gross individual mistakes. The tactics didn't tell him much."

Unfortunately for Aliu the criticism from Kyhos did not end there. The interviewer pressed him further regarding Aliu's ability to self reflect regarding his own mistake and again Kyhos was very critical. The former Minnesota North Stars draft pick turned head coach said that not only could Aliu not own up to his mistakes, but he would blame everyone else instead to the point that it created a negative atmosphere for the other players as well.

"Yeah, self-reflection and modesty. Everything was wrong, except me. It is then difficult to work with this type of player. In addition, teammates in the cabin also know this, which then also causes problems."

Given the way Aliu bounced around from team to team, and even from league to league, during his career it seems fair to suggest that there may be something to Kyhos' comments here, but again no doubt there is another side to this story as well.