NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, 73, recently told Hockey News that he watched the entire first season of HBO Max’s queer hockey drama “Heated Rivalry” in one sitting and thought it was “a wonderful story.”
“The content — particularly for young people — may be a little spicy, so you have to balance that out with how you embrace it,” he said.
Bettman added, “I thought the storyline was very compelling. And a lot of fun, because I could see where they were picking at things we [as a league] had done in the past, whether or not it was being in Sochi or the All-Star Game in Tampa. It was very well done.”
“Heated Rivalry” has exploded in popularity ever since it debuted on HBO Max in late November of 2025. Based on Rachel Reid’s “Game Changer” book series, the show follows Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), two up-and-coming hockey stars who engage in a secret, years long romanace off the ice. The show has been renewed for a second season.
As proof of the show’s universal appeal, stars Williams and Storrie carried the Olympic torch on Sunday as part of the Milano Cortina 2026 relay in Feltre, Italy. They also presented at the Golden Globes, escorted to the stage by two UFC fighters. In the days following the Globes, Williams went to Milan for Men’s Fashion Week, where he walked in the Dsquared2 show and attended the Giorgio Armani runway presentation.
During a recent appearance on the “Shut Up Evan” podcast, Williams said that the sudden fame has been tricky to navigate. He said, “I was just talking with one of my agents yesterday, and she said Connor and I have had to learn what a lot of actors get in five years, in like 30 days.”
Sign up for Variety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.