Akim Aliu facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Akim Aliu |
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Aliu with the Calgary Flames in 2012
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| Born | April 24, 1989 Okene, Nigeria |
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| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
| Weight | 225 lb (102 kg; 16 st 1 lb) | ||
| Position | Right wing/Defence | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| team Former teams |
Free agent Calgary Flames AIK IF Amur Khabarovsk HC '05 Banská Bystrica Karlskrona HK HC Litvínov |
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| NHL Draft | 56th overall, 2007 Chicago Blackhawks |
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| Playing career | 2008–2020 2024–present |
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Akim Olumide Aliu (born April 24, 1989) is a professional ice hockey player. He was born in Nigeria and grew up in Ukraine and Canada. Akim is currently a free agent, meaning he is not signed with a team right now. The Chicago Blackhawks picked him in the second round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. He played for many teams in different leagues, including the Calgary Flames in the NHL. He played his first NHL game on April 5, 2012.
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Early Life and Hockey Start
Akim Aliu was born in Okene, Nigeria. He spent his early childhood in Kyiv, Ukraine. His father, Tai, was from Nigeria and met Akim's mother, Larissa, who is Ukrainian, while studying in Kyiv. Akim has a brother named Edward.
Akim sees himself as Ukrainian Canadian. He says his family follows Ukrainian traditions. He even speaks Ukrainian with them. When Akim was seven, his family moved to Canada. They settled in the Toronto area because they were not comfortable with the political situation after the Soviet Union ended.
When Akim arrived in Canada, he spoke Ukrainian and Russian. He did not know English and had never played hockey. He got his first ice skates at a garage sale. He started playing in a local league in Parkdale. Akim quickly showed a natural talent for hockey. In just a few years, he was chosen in the first round of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) draft by the Windsor Spitfires.
Playing Career Highlights
Junior Hockey Years
Akim's first OHL season was in 2005–06. During practice, he had an incident with another player, Steve Downie. Downie hit him in the face with his stick, knocking out some teeth. Akim returned to the ice and fought Downie. This happened because Akim refused to take part in a team ritual. This event became international news.
Both players were traded from Windsor. The team's coach and general manager were also suspended. The team was fined money. Years later, in 2020, Akim shared more details. He felt that Downie treated him badly because of his different background.
After the incident, Akim was traded to the Sudbury Wolves. He missed two months of play due to league rules. He played 47 games that season, scoring 10 goals and 10 assists. Akim was known as a challenging player to manage. Still, he was ranked as a top prospect for the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.
The Chicago Blackhawks picked him 56th overall in the second round. Akim promised to make other teams regret not picking him sooner. He played his best junior season in 2007–08 with the London Knights. He scored 61 points in 60 games. He then played his first professional games with the Rockford IceHogs.
Professional Hockey Journey
Akim signed his first professional contract with the Blackhawks in 2008. He played for the Rockford IceHogs in the American Hockey League (AHL). He also played for the Toledo Walleye in the ECHL. In 2010, his rights were traded to the Atlanta Thrashers. He spent most of the 2010–11 season with the Thrashers' AHL team, the Chicago Wolves.
The Thrashers team moved and became the Winnipeg Jets in 2011. Akim started the 2011–12 season in the ECHL with the Colorado Eagles. He later played in Austria for a short time. Akim then met with the Calgary Flames general manager. He convinced him to give him another chance.
The Flames got Akim on loan for their AHL team, the Abbotsford Heat. He played well in a new role. The Flames then traded for his NHL rights in January 2012. Akim made his NHL debut on April 5, 2012. He got his first point by helping on a goal. He scored his first two NHL goals two days later.
Akim said that his past challenges helped him grow as a player. The Flames signed him again for another year. He played five games with the Flames in the 2012–13 season. He spent most of that year with the Heat. After that, he played for several other teams in the AHL and ECHL. He also played overseas in Russia and Sweden.
In November 2019, Akim shared something important. He said that his former coach, Bill Peters, had used racial comments towards him. This happened when Peters coached the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. Peters resigned from his coaching job a few days later.
In January 2020, Akim returned to professional hockey. He signed a contract with a Czech team, HC Litvínov. On June 8, 2020, Akim helped start the Hockey Diversity Alliance. This group works to fight intolerance and racism in hockey. Akim returned to professional hockey on March 20, 2024. He signed a contract with the San Jose Barracuda, an AHL team. He played three games for them in the 2023–24 season.
Career Statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2004–05 | Milton Icehawks | OPJHL | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Windsor Spitfires | OHL | 18 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 25 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Sudbury Wolves | OHL | 29 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 54 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 2006–07 | Sudbury Wolves | OHL | 53 | 20 | 22 | 42 | 104 | 21 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 50 | ||
| 2007–08 | London Knights | OHL | 60 | 28 | 33 | 61 | 133 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 15 | ||
| 2007–08 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | London Knights | OHL | 16 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Sudbury Wolves | OHL | 29 | 10 | 16 | 26 | 61 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 14 | ||
| 2008–09 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | 48 | 11 | 6 | 17 | 69 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Toledo Walleye | ECHL | 13 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 16 | ||
| 2010–11 | Chicago Wolves | AHL | 43 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 53 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Gwinnett Gladiators | ECHL | 16 | 12 | 8 | 20 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Peoria Rivermen | AHL | 16 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 2011–12 | Colorado Eagles | ECHL | 10 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Abbotsford Heat | AHL | 42 | 10 | 4 | 14 | 59 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 28 | ||
| 2011–12 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Abbotsford Heat | AHL | 42 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 111 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 14 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Hartford Wolf Pack | AHL | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | AIK IF | SHL | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 10 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 51 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Bakersfield Condors | ECHL | 15 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Oklahoma City Barons | AHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Amur Khabarovsk | KHL | 19 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Florida Everblades | ECHL | 11 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Atlanta Gladiators | ECHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Cleveland Monsters | AHL | 13 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 19 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | HC '05 Banská Bystrica | Slovak | 9 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Karlskrona HK | SHL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | IK Pantern | Allsv | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||
| 2018–19 | Orlando Solar Bears | ECHL | 11 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | HC Litvínov | ELH | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | San Jose Barracuda | AHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
Images for kids
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Aliu during his brief time with AIK IF in 2014.
