Inside the Cottage Showdown: How the Shane-Ilya Rivalry Boiled Over

Heated Rivalry wraps its first season with exactly the kind of big, messy feelings you want from a hockey romance: a private getaway, a surprise parental walk-in, a coming-out dinner, and a plan so ambitious it basically begs for a season 2. It’s heartfelt, occasionally chaotic, and it puts Shane and Ilya right on the edge of living the life they actually want.

The Cottage: the plan, the pivot, the promise

The finale (fittingly titled The Cottage) gives Shane and Ilya the one thing they’ve been starving for: time. Shane invites Ilya up to his place in Ottawa for two weeks over the summer, and the quiet doesn’t just help them breathe — it gets them talking. Childhoods, fears, hopes, Ilya’s relationship with his mother — all of it finally out loud.

Then Ilya drops the thorny stuff: he’s been considering giving up his Russian passport and marrying Svetlana to get American citizenship. Not exactly a low-stakes workaround. Shane, to his credit, asks him not to do it and pushes for another path that doesn’t nuke their relationship in the process.

That opens the door to a longer-term game plan. Shane suggests Ilya leave the Boston Raiders and head to the Ottawa Centaurs — closer to Shane, and no longer stuck on rival teams that turn every game into an emotional booby trap. He also pitches starting a joint charity as a way to reshape how people see them publicly, with the eventual goal of living openly. It’s pragmatic and romantic, which is very much this show’s lane.

"I love you."

They both say it. It’s simple, but it lands. The plan won’t happen overnight, and they know it — but at least now they’re pulling in the same direction.

The surprise walk-in and the dinner that changes everything

Peace doesn’t last. Shane’s dad, David, walks in on them kissing at the cottage, which turns into an immediate reality check: time to tell the truth at home. They head to Shane’s family place and sit down with his parents, David and Yuna, to explain how this started and how long it’s been going on. The shock is real — their son and his on-ice rival have been secretly dating for years — but by the end of the conversation, what comes through is that the love is the real thing.

Yuna steps out, and Shane follows, worried he’s disappointed her and apologizing for not coming out sooner. She flips that on its head, saying it isn’t his fault and that she regrets not making it easier for him to open up earlier. They head back in for dinner with David and Ilya, and the talk turns practical: what’s the plan, and who gets to know? For now, they’re keeping the relationship quiet while they figure out the logistics. When Yuna asks about Ilya leaving Boston, Shane is clear: Ilya’s loyalty isn’t to a logo — it’s to him.

Shane spirals a bit about the future, and Ilya steadies him, reminding him he’s got his boyfriend and his parents behind him. The word boyfriend catches Shane off guard (in a good way), they seal it with a kiss, and the episode sends them back to the cottage chasing the sunset. It’s not all solved, but the path is finally visible.

What season 2 is lining up

The network has already renewed the show for season 2, and this finale tees up a handful of big arcs: whether Ilya actually leaves the Raiders for the Centaurs, how they navigate the citizenship issue without a sham marriage, when and how they go public, and whether that joint charity becomes the bridge to living openly. The series has been pretty true to Rachel Reid’s books while still taking some TV-sized swings, and this ending keeps that balance intact — heartfelt, strategic, and just messy enough to feel lived-in.

• Show: Heated Rivalry
• Seasons: 1 (season 2 renewed)
• Creator: Jacob Tierney
• Based on: Game Changers series by Rachel Reid
• Main cast: Francois Arnaud, Hudson Williams, Connor Storrie, Christina Chang, Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova
• Debut: two-part premiere on Crave and HBO Max
• Where to watch: HBO Max (US), also on Crave
• IMDb: 9.1/10
• Rotten Tomatoes: 96%