Connor Storrie. “Heated Rivalry”
The Heated Rivalry TV series is an upcoming gay romance drama that’s generating significant buzz.
The six-part series is an adaptation of the wildly popular M/M romance novel of the same name by Canadian author Rachel Reid, delivering a steamy, enemies-to-lovers story set against the competitive backdrop of professional ice hockey.
It follows the intense, years-long secret relationship between two Major League Hockey captains and rivals: Shane Hollander (played by Hudson Williams) of the Montreal team and Ilya Rozanov (played by Connor Storrie) of the Boston team. Their connection begins as a secret fling when they’re teenagers and evolves over eight years as they struggle to balance their fierce careers with their genuine, deep feelings for each other.
The series will premiere in November 2025 on the Canadian streaming service Crave. An exact date for the launch is still pending.
As of now, there is no official U.S. release date or streaming platform confirmed for Heated Rivalry.
Since Crave is a Canadian-only service, the series needs to be acquired by a U.S. distributor.
The series is currently being shopped to international buyers at events like MIPCOM Cannes. This means producers are actively looking for a U.S. streamer (like Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, or Amazon Prime Video) to pick up the rights.
There is a reason for optimism. Other Canadian shows from these same producers (like Shoresy and Letterkenny) have been successfully acquired by Hulu for U.S. distribution, suggesting a strong possibility for Heated Rivalry to follow a similar path.
Fans who are eager to see the show picked up in the States have been encouraged by the book’s author to reach out to U.S. streaming platforms to voice their interest.
