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In recent months, there has never been more interest in ice hockey, and it’s not because of Team USA’s double win at the Paris Olympics or the Stanley Cup finals. After HBO Max and Crave released the mega-popular Heated Rivalry last year, Prime Video premiered Off Campus on the 2026 TV schedule. Now it seems like Netflix is getting in on its own book-to-screen adaptation with a steamy show about ice athletes, and Heated Rivalry better watch out.
According to Variety, the streaming giant has greenlit a series adaptation of the Hannah Grace novel Icebreaker, Netflix’s executive Jinny Howe revealed. The book, which is the first of three novels in the Maple Hills series, has gone viral on BookTok due to its very NSFW nature. Since being published in 2022 with a wide release in 2023, Icebreaker has sold close to 5 million copies worldwide and spent 70 consecutive weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, so it was only a matter of time before it was adapted. The logline for the show reads:
She’s the transfer gunning for Olympic gold. He’s the campus star chasing the NHL. But when an accident forces their teams to share one rink, Anastasia Allen and Nate Hawkins collide – and discipline gives way to obsession, because the only thing more dangerous than wanting to win is wanting each other.
News of Icebreaker’s adaptation comes on the heels of not one but two successful ice hockey shows on other streamers. Heated Rivalry, starring Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, premiered in November on Crave and HBO Max. Based on the Game Changers book series by Rachel Reid, the series became an instant hit, with the second season being announced just weeks after the premiere.
Prime Video, meanwhile, premiered its own ice hockey novel adaptation in May. Off Campus, based on Elle Kennedy’s Off-Campus book series, was renewed for Season 2 in February because of the overwhelming anticipation. Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli led the first season, while Mika Abdalla and Stephen Kalyn will lead Season 2. Netflix apparently wants in on what the fans are craving, because you never can really have too many ice hockey shows.
Heated Rivalry definitely surpassed all expectations in terms of popularity, and while it would definitely be hard to match that same level with another ice hockey show, Icebreaker is a pretty popular book. If anything, Netflix has done some pretty successful adaptations, such as Bridgerton and To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, so it’s not like this isn’t new territory.
Plus, the streamer dipped its toes into a different adaptation about ice athletes with the figure skating series Finding Her Edge earlier this year. Based on the Jennifer Iacopelli novel of the same name, the series premiered in January and was renewed for Season 2 the following month. It’s hard to tell how Icebreaker will fare, but more information on the new series should be released soon.
Amanda Lasher and Jade Bartlett will write and executive produce Icebreaker, with Bartlett writing the pilot and Lasher serving as showrunner. Alex Cooper, Matt Kaplan, and Mina Lefevre will executive produce via Unwell Productions. Make sure to sign up for a Netflix subscription soon if you haven’t already, so you can watch the show when it premieres.
