Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams in ‘Heated Rivalry’ (photo: HBO/Crave)

Hot on the trail of “Boots” and a few other prominently gay TV series, HBO Max and Crave in Canada present “Heated Rivalry,” about closeted gay rival hockey players. Jacob Tierney’s show is based on Canadian author Rachel Reid’s popular six-book romance series that blends sports with the classic ‘enemies to lovers’ trope.

Both the show and books explore the complex relationship between two opposing athletes who grow a secret romance alongside their on-ice competition dating back to 2008. Canadian Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Russian Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), keep up the façade, while Ilya’s brother in Russia begs for money, and Shane’s mother obsesses about endorsement deals and being a representative

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