Steamy Canadian hockey series ‘Heated Rivalry’ scores second season at Crave

The bestselling author behind the Game Changer series, Rachel Reid, on the Crave adaptation and the fanfare around it.

TORONTO — Canada’s hot new hockey romance has scored a second season renewal.

Bell Media says its breakout hit “Heated Rivalry,” about two male hockey players in a secret love affair, will return to Crave and its U.S. streaming service partner, HBO Max, for more episodes.

The LGBTQ+ series from writer-director Jacob Tierney has exploded in popularity over the past few weeks, thanks to clips of its spicier moments shared widely on TikTok and other social media platforms.

Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie star as rival NHL hotshots Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, who fall into a years-long relationship outside of the rink.

Crave says its steamy adaptation was its most-watched original series debut within the first seven days, though it did not provide exact viewership numbers.

Producers did not say where they intend to take the series in its second season. The season finale will be released Dec. 26.

“Heated Rivalry” is based on the “Game Changers” book series by Nova Scotia author Rachel Reid.

Outside North America, several new distribution deals have been secured for the Crave Original, including Sky in New Zealand and Movistar Plus+ in Spain.

HBO Max will have the show’s rights in numerous regions of Asia, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and the Philippines, while deals with platforms in additional countries will be announced soon, including the United Kingdom.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2025.

David Friend, The Canadian Press

Crave is a division of Bell Media, which is part of BCE Inc.