Heated Rivalry has become one of the most popular shows in recent television history.
Not only was the Canadian-filmed show a national hit, but it also became one of the most popular shows in the United States and Australia.
Its success will surely spawn other steamy hockey romance shows, and Vancouver could be the home of the next big hit.
Amazon Prime recently released a trailer for Off Campus, a TV show based on the hit book series by Elle Kennedy.
While the Off Campus storylines lack the secret queer hockey player romance that Heated Rivalry brought to television screens, Kennedy’s work is a worthy competitor to Rachel Reid’s catalogue of gay hockey romance novels.
Kennedy’s books have been mentioned by Rolling Stone as the No. 1 series for fans of Heated Rivalry to pick up and read.
And, the first season of Off Campus, inspired by Kennedy’s first book, The Deal, was filmed in Vancouver.
UBC was the main filming location for the new show, with filming crews spotted at the UBC Main Library and at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Arena.
>
>
>
>
>
> View this post on Instagram
>
>
>
>
>
>
> A post shared by Off Campus (@offcampusonprime)
Some of the hockey scenes even featured current New York Rangers defenceman and Coquitlam, B.C. native, Vincent Iorio, as a stunt double.
Off Campus features the story of hockey-hating Hannah Wells (Elle Wright), who gets tangled in a love triangle featuring hockey player Garret Graham (Belmont Cameli).
While the bar for hockey romance shows was set exorbitantly high by Heated Rivalry, there is a strong following for Kennedy’s book series. The Deal, which Off Campus was based on, was released in 2015. It was the first of five books written by Kennedy, and the series has sold over three million copies worldwide.
Filming for the show took place at UBC from June to October of 2025. The eight-episode series will debut on Prime Video on May 13, 2026.
