Amerks inviting Akim Aliu to training camp

With their most intimidating forechecker, Colton Gillies, no longer on the roster, the Rochester Americans will give veteran winger Akim Aliu a chance to fill the role.

The 6-foot-4, 225-pound Aliu has been invited to the Amerks training camp, which opens at 10 a.m. Monday at the Bill Gray's Regional Iceplex on the MCC campus. He does not have a contract.

Aliu, 25, has played 269 games during five pro seasons, including 221 in the American Hockey League (40 goals, 27 assists, 67 points, 353 penalty minutes).

He has skated in seven NHL games, producing 2-1-3 with 26 penalty minutes. His two goals were scored in the same game, for the Calgary Flames in April 2012 against Anaheim.

Aliu has done a lot of traveling; he has already played under the watch of five NHL organizations:

** He was drafted on the 2nd round (56th overall) by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2007;

** He was part of a seven-player, two-draft-pick trade to the Atlanta Thrashers in 2010. The deal included Honeoye Falls native Marty Reasoner.

** He was traded to the Flames in January of 2012 after impressive play for the AHL's Abbotsford Heat.

** He earned a 25-game AHL tryout contract from the Hamilton Bulldogs out of training camp last season but was released after 14 games (3-1-4, 18 PIMs). His final game with the Bulldogs was a 3-1 loss to the Amerks on Nov. 13.

** He joined the Hartford Wolf Pack on a tryout a month later and produced one goal in nine games.

The Amerks certainly have a need for a veteran power forward. Gillies came to training camp on a tryout last season, earned an AHL contract, and became one of the more important members of the team because of his forechecking, shot-blocking and penalty killing.

Gillies was hoping to land an NHL contract over the summer and is in training camp with the New York Islanders.

Aliu was born in Nigeria and spent his early childhood in Ukraine before his family moved to Canada when he was 10.

While he has shown flashes of great potential, he is still more widely known across hockey for his refusal to take part in a degrading, insulting hazing ritual while playing junior hockey for the Windsor Spitfires.

The incident led to his trade, as well as the trade of team captain Steve Downey. But it also heightened awareness of, and helped put an end to some, humiliating hazing traditions that existed in junior hockey.