For audiences who thought they had already consumed their full share of ice hockey-centered romantic content this year, a new streaming hit is here to upend that expectation. Earlier this year, the Canadian drama *Heated Rivalry* took the global streaming world by storm after its January UK release, catapulting leads Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie to international fame. Now, just months later, Amazon Prime Video has dropped *Off Campus* — a second ice hockey romance adapted from a hit book franchise — and the streamer confirms it has already claimed the number one spot as its most-watched series worldwide.
Based on the massively popular book series by Canadian author Elle Kennedy, which has sold more than 25 million copies globally, *Off Campus* has earned widespread acclaim from fans for its thoughtful storytelling. Set on the campus of a fictional Boston university, the series tracks the romantic entanglements and personal lives of the school’s college ice hockey team, centering the core relationship between star forward Garrett Graham (played by Belmont Cameli) and student Hannah Wells (portrayed by Ella Bright of CBBC’s *Malory Towers* fame). Unlike the one-note, hyper-masculine jock stereotypes that have long dominated sports media, *Off Campus* redefines its male leads as emotionally intelligent, respectful partners who reject outdated tropes.
Fans and content creators point to the natural synergy between ice hockey as a sport and the romance genre to explain the current boom in these stories. Meagan Carioti, a 27-year-old book content creator, notes that hockey’s reputation as an intense, high-stakes, passionate sport translates seamlessly to romantic storytelling. Sophie Bonser, a 30-year-old British ice hockey fan and social media manager, adds that for audiences outside of North America, the sport carries an inherent novelty that drives curiosity — and its typical low-scoring, tight match structure means every game carries constant tension, perfect for television drama.
What truly sets *Off Campus* apart from many traditional romance and sports dramas, however, is its unapologetic female-centric perspective. The series doesn’t shy away from exploring topics like female sexual desire, and it has drawn particular praise from women viewers for centering women’s pleasure, comfort, and autonomy. The first season adapts Kennedy’s 2015 and 2016 novels *The Deal* and *The Score*, and handles heavy, real-world themes with nuance: Hannah’s core storyline follows her healing from sexual trauma suffered in high school, with Garrett depicted as a sensitive, patient partner who prioritizes her boundaries and trauma. The show also addresses other serious issues including domestic violence, addiction, and economic insecurity, weaving these narratives into its central romantic arcs rather than sidelining them.
The series even pushes back against harmful stereotypes, addressing the derogatory term “puck bunny” — used to dismiss female fans as only interested in players, not the sport — while emphasizing its male characters’ commitment to respecting women and upholding consent. For Carioti, the focus on the female gaze, and well-written male characters crafted by a female creator, is unmatched. “I love men written by women, the yearning is just unmatched and it’s the female gaze — what women want — I think is different to what men think women want,” she explains. She also highlights the thoughtful juxtaposition of hockey’s public bravado with the hidden vulnerability of the team’s players, as well as the warm depiction of found family through the teammates’ close bond.
Even viewers outside the show’s core demographic have been won over. 25-year-old content creator Oliver Zane, whose reaction videos to *Off Campus* have racked up hundreds of thousands of views on TikTok, says he is “not the primary audience” but still a huge fan. He praises female writers for their nuanced character development that makes characters feel more grounded and realistic, and notes that the show’s focus on prioritizing women gave him new insight into women’s lived experiences. Zane adds that the emotionally aware, accountable portrayal of male leads is especially refreshing at a moment when toxic hypermasculinity is increasingly promoted to young men.
Despite its critical and commercial success, the hockey romance genre is often unfairly dismissed as trivial, “girly,” or overly explicit, dismissed with the derogatory label “hockey smut.” But fans like Carioti and Zane are pushing back against that characterization, pointing out that *Off Campus* weaves important themes of female empowerment and survivor healing into its engaging romantic and sports story. For viewers craving fresh, thoughtful storytelling that balances high-stakes sports action with heartfelt, modern romance, *Off Campus* has already cemented its place as the must-watch streaming hit of the season.