Shane's Intense Competition Team Canada sweatshirt is now officially launching.
CBC
Well, everyone, we made it.
Almost immediately after Crave's breakout hockey romance Heated Rivalry debuted, so did the hype surrounding Shane Hollander's Team Canada zip-up fleece. Hollander, portrayed by Canadian actor Hudson Williams, wears the white zip-up during the Sochi Olympic scenes in Episode 2.
And although the cozy jacket isn’t officially branded Team Canada merchandise, fans have been clamoring for the chance to purchase it ever since. Now, the creators of the immensely popular series have teamed up with a Canadian apparel company to fulfill our request.
"We're launching the fleece," clothing brand Province of Canada announced on its website and social media channels Wednesday morning, referencing one of the show’s most memorable lines.
The jacket will be manufactured and distributed by the Toronto-based clothing label. No specifics about pricing or release date have been provided yet, with Province of Canada indicating they will share those details when they are available.
"Fans are the core of Heated Rivalry, and this is all thanks to them," executive producers and co-presidents of Accent Aigu Entertainment, Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady, stated in a press release on Wednesday.
"We’ve carefully noted what they’ve been requesting, and the fleece jacket has consistently been at the top of that list," they noted.
It would be an understatement to simply describe Heated Rivalry as popular. The series about two hockey players competing against one another on the ice, yet forming a secret bond off the rink, is more of a phenomenon.
The six-part series is inspired by a passionate hockey romance collection titled Game Changers by Nova Scotia author Rachel Reid. The screen adaptation was crafted by Tierney for Crave.
Since Heated Rivalry premiered in late November, Bell Media reports the show’s audience on Crave has surged by 400 percent, making it the streamer’s top debut series ever. Outside of Canada, Variety indicates it’s the highest-rated non-animated series ever acquired by HBO Max.
Last week, it was revealed that the show's co-stars, Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, will be among the torchbearers carrying the Olympic flame for the Milano-Cortina Winter Games in February.
And regarding the fleece? The excitement even caught the attention of the official Team Canada account. After an Instagram post teasing the lineup for Canada's 2026 men's hockey team was filled with comments focused on the Heated Rivalry fleece, they humorously appealed to fans to "be enthusiastic for both."
In turn, another supporter started a Change.org petition urging Team Canada to proceed with a design that would "[lower] the barriers for new fans, including women, LGBTQIA+ fans, and individuals new to hockey or the Olympics, to participate in a manner that feels inclusive and genuine."
On Wednesday, the creators of that petition proclaimed their campaign a success.
"While the upcoming release isn’t official Team Canada merchandise, there is a confirmed route for fans to acquire a version of the fleece," Change.org mentioned in a press announcement.
The Moment a Heated Rivalry enthusiast replicated Shane Hollander's fleece.