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The Heated Rivalry <\/em>fandom has spoken: Connor Storrie must <\/em>be protected at all costs.<\/p>\n Storrie, who is one-half of the breakout twosome that emerged from the gay hockey romance, is set to make his Saturday Night Live <\/em>debut<\/a> this weekend. But what began as unbridled, feral excitement devolved into dread after it was reported that Team USA\u2019s Quinn Hughes would also appear on the episode. Many fans were distressed to learn that the Minnesota Wild defenseman is scheduled to be a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon <\/em>this Monday.<\/p>\n The news, which was first reported by the Athletic<\/a>, has sparked an impassioned response from Heated Rivalry <\/em>fans who, before last week, might have welcomed a Storrie-Hughes collab with open arms. Whatever goodwill Hughes had built with the dedicated fandom seems to have dissipated following Team USA\u2019s gold medal win last Sunday.<\/p>\n American hockey enthusiasts had every reason to celebrate after defeating longstanding rival, Team Canada, in the gold medal game. The occasion was significant as it marked the first time the USA had won Olympic gold in men\u2019s hockey in over 40 years. But the unifying moment was sullied for Heated Rivalry<\/em> fans after FBI Director Kash Patel was seen partying with the guys in the locker room after the game. Coupled with a controversial phone call with Trump<\/a> and a seemingly excited response to an invitation to the White House, athletes like Hughes came under fire from the fan base.<\/p>\n Hughes, with an American flag draped over his jersey, was among the Team USA hockey players seen celebrating with Patel and laughing at Trump\u2019s remarks about reluctantly having to invite the women\u2019s team. What was doubly troubling to Hughes\u2019s former fans was that he\u2019d find such remarks amusing, given that his mother, Ellen Weinberg-Hughes<\/a>, was an integral member of the U.S. Women\u2019s National Hockey Team in 1992, and also helped coach this year\u2019s women\u2019s team to Olympic gold.<\/p>\n At this point, it\u2019s common knowledge that Heated Rivalry <\/em>is a global phenomenon<\/a>. The Jacob Tierney-created show, adapted from Rachel Reid\u2019s Game Changers<\/em> book series, has been widely praised for its candid and heartfelt depiction of the emotional strife closeted athletes<\/a> endure. Storrie plays Ilya Rozanov, the bad-boy Russian captain of the fictional Boston Raiders, who falls in love with Shane Hollander, played by Hudson Williams, the soft-spoken captain of the beloved Montreal Metros. Their years-spanning fling evolves into something deeper and more complicated as they balance their on-ice rivalry with their off-ice romance.<\/p>\n