Former junior hockey coach Graham James was sentenced in 1997 to 42 months in jail for sexual abuse. (Canadian Press)

Moose Jaw police say that until hockey star Theoren Fleury comes forward with an official complaint, they won't be investigating accusations of sexual abuse.

Fleury is set to release his autobiography, Playing with Fire, on Wednesday, in which he alleges he was sexually abused by junior hockey coach Graham James in the 1980s.

Fleury, who played 16 seasons in the NHL with the Colorado Avalanche, New York Rangers, Chicago Blackhawks and Calgary Flames, will tell his story on CBC Television's The Hour on Thursday.

Fleury says the abuse occurred while he was a teenager playing junior hockey for the Moose Jaw Warriors.

Former NHL player Sheldon Kennedy, who was also on the Moose Jaw Warriors roster, and who was abused by James, said Fleury needs to make the allegations official and file a formal complaint so police can investigate and possibly lay a criminal charge.

"I think it's important that Theoren follows through with the charge.... I mean, those are pretty serious allegations," said Kennedy, who now works with the Red Cross to prevent abuse.

"People in the trenches around these issues spend countless hours working and trying to gain the trust of these young people to make sure that we can speak to the police and charge the pedophiles, and I think that it's really important for Theoren to follow through with that."

James was convicted in 1997 and sentenced to 42 months in prison for abusing Kennedy and one other junior hockey player.

Playing with Fire delves into 41-year-old Fleury's past, including his problems with drinking, drugs and gambling.

In the book, Fleury alleges the sexual abuse began in the summer of 1982, when James took Fleury and other boys on a trip to Disneyland, and it continued for two years.

Fleury met James in the summer of 1981 when James was an instructor at a hockey school in Brandon, Man., and Fleury was 13. Two years later, James drafted Fleury to play with a midget-level team in Winnipeg.

James insisted that Fleury sleep at the coach's house two nights a week over a two-year period that included the player's rookie season in 1984 with Moose Jaw of the Western Hockey League, Fleury says in the book.

In an interview with the CBC's The Fifth Estate, to air Friday, Fleury says he doesn't want to become the poster boy for abuse by James, but spoke out so others with similar stories would feel comfortable coming forward.