**The Time to Begin Packing for the Cottage is Now**: As the buzz surrounding Crave and HBO Max's breakout series "Heated Rivalry" continues to grow, Connor Storrie confirmed that plans for the gay hockey drama's second season are coming together swiftly. "I think we're gonna be filming soon," he said in a Jan. 14 interview with Today's Craig Melvin. "I don't know when exactly." The 25-year-old actor noted that series creator Jacob Tierny is still writing the new episodes, centered around the events set in Rachel Reid's The Long Game. However, he seemed to confirm Craig's estimation of a summer production kickoff, adding, "Yeah, I think about then."
While details on season two are still under wraps, fans of the series—based on the Game Changers book series—will soon have something to tide them over. Earlier this week, Rachel announced that she's hard at work on the next chapter of Ilya Rozanov and Shane Hollander's love story, which will unfold in her upcoming novel Unrivaled. "I'm writing this one for all the Hollanov fans, old and new," she told People of the new installment, set for release this fall. "I can't tell you how much the love my characters have received over the years means to me. It has been a blast writing these guys again, and revisiting the entire Game Changers cast."
When cameras do start rolling, Connor and Hudson Williams—who star alongside François Arnaud, Robbie G.K., and more—should have no trouble easing back into their leading roles as professional adversaries who take up a secret, steamy romance off the ice. After all, they did plenty of prep work to nail their performances going into season one. "Connor and I had chemistry instantly," Hudson, 24, exclusively told Zuri Hall during Live from E: Golden Globes 2026 on Jan. 11. "But then we had to find a way to get Shane and Ilya to have chemistry." As such, the pair spent time clearly establishing both characters' personalities, which Hudson noted are "different than our own, for sure."
"Connor is very expressive. Ilya is kind of like this Slavic rock," the Canadian actor continued. "Then Shane is also like a dense brick. So, you have the Slavic rock and the dense brick." With this kind of preparation and passion from the cast and crew, it's clear that fans of "Heated Rivalry" are in for another thrilling and emotionally charged season.
