Season 2 of Heated Rivalry has revealed its central antagonist, promising plenty of drama for viewers. Since the show premiered in November, the relationship between rival hockey players Ilya Rozanov and Shane Hollander has captured the public’s attention. The show’s popularity has quickly made stars of Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams, so the renewal for a second season before the first one even finished wasn’t a surprise.
Based on Rachel Reid’s novel and created by Jacob Tierney for Crave, Heated Rivalry is a fantastic example of how to adapt a book for television. Fans are already looking forward to season two, which will be based on The Long Game. While we still have a wait ahead of us, official updates and the source material reveal that the next season will introduce a clear antagonist to Ilya and Shane’s story.
The Montreal Metros Is Heated Rivalry Season 2‘s Main Villain
Knowing how faithfully Tierney followed the first book with Heated Rivalry season 1, I’m pretty confident he’ll do the same for season 2. Adapting The Long Game is going to be a bit more challenging though. It’s a much more complex story with a lot more characters to juggle, and it deals with some really serious themes that deserve the time and attention they need. I’m excited to see how he handles it!
Tierney has announced that the second season of Heated Rivalry will have six episodes. A key moment that will happen is Shane coming out to his teammates on the Montreal Metros, as discussed on The Loon Call Podcast. This event will position the team as the main antagonists of the season, because their reaction to Shane’s news—as shown in The Long Game—is particularly harsh and critical.
Why Montreal Metros’ Treatment Of Shane In The Long Game Is So Infuriating
Readers of The Long Game might see Commissioner Roger Cromwell as the real villain in Ilya and Shane’s story. He’s shown as more clearly the antagonist, ignoring the harmful environment within the league and actively suppressing efforts to improve it. He also directly intimidates Ilya and Shane after discovering their relationship.
Cromwell is a standard villain figure – present in the story as the league commissioner, but otherwise unimportant. The Montreal Metros, however, are deeply connected to Shane; they drafted him, and he won several championships with the team thanks to strong relationships with his teammates and coaches. It’s shocking and upsetting that so many of them would abandon him simply because he is gay. His sexuality never affected his playing ability until they chose to make it an issue.
It’s unclear how much of Shane’s coming out story after he tells his team will be featured in season 2 of Heated Rivalry. While it’s a key part of the larger arc between him and Ilya in The Long Game, the show might not have enough time to cover all the details. Either way, the way the Montreal Metros react to Shane coming out – essentially betraying him – really establishes them as the main antagonists of the season.
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2026-02-15 19:48