By Andy Marston, Sports Pundit
Did you know that Ottawa officially proclaimed January 29, 2026 as ‘Shane Hollander Day’?
The proclamation was made by Mayor Mark Sutcliffe, celebrating the fictional Heated Rivalry character as a hometown hockey hero and positioning the series as part of Ottawa’s contemporary cultural identity.
Heated Rivalry is part two of celebrated Canadian author Rachel Reid's Game Changers series and the show version was commissioned and developed by streaming platform Crave.
The show’s popularity has driven real-world engagement, with lead actors appearing at the Golden Globes, serving as torchbearers at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, and attending major industry events in Ottawa.
The Ottawa Senators have also capitalised on the attention by selling official jerseys featuring the names of the show’s characters (“Hollander” and “Rozanov”), which have sold out multiple times with profits directed to Ottawa Pride Hockey.
With Season 2 rumoured to be set in Ottawa, the city and its hockey ecosystem are positioning themselves to extend the show’s momentum into tourism, commerce and long-term brand relevance.
Why It Matters:
Recognising the show as a global storytelling engine that is shaping how people feel about hockey, identity, and place, the city of Ottawa has chosen to lean in and belong to it.
Importantly, they have done so without waiting for a formal partnership, paid placement, or rights agreement. And as a result, captured upside that many organisations miss while waiting for permission.
Cultural moments often have short half-lives, with value peaking before they become obvious. By acting while the show was still surging, Ottawa helped shape the
narrative and add to the lore.
Ottawa also spoke the language of fandom. Positioning the city as the ‘birthplace of Shane Hollander’ showed cultural fluency rather than campaign thinking. That tone invited participation, turned viewers into advocates, and converted attention into intent.
As Glenn Duncan, EVP & Chief Marketing Officer at Ottawa Tourism, explained: “Storytelling is something that lends itself to good tourism marketing. When people see destinations in movies or on TV, they want to visit that place.”
The Ottawa Senators have applied a similar instinct. By launching jerseys featuring the show’s fictional characters and responding to demand fans had already created, the team translated narrative momentum into increased awareness and relevance. That move required fluidity, timing, and confidence rather than blockbuster budgets or long development cycles.
The most valuable brand opportunities increasingly arrive through culture instead of planned campaigns. The organisations that benefit most are those that recognise that narrative momentum early and create the processes to be able to act decisively while attention is still forming.
In a very different context, WHOOP’s rapid response around the Australian Open showed how speed alone can generate outsized visibility.
Teams, leagues, and destinations should study this closely and be ready to move with the same intelligence when the next moment arrives.
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