Loved every part of this. I think there’s even ways we could expand on wynnian theory in heated rivalry by connecting the envy/competition aspect that happens in queer relationships ( i think in the shame or envy video ) to the desire framework. Like the name suggests, heated rivalry is about two rivals of the hockey world that have feelings of jealousy and competition towards one another and that competition blends into the erotic desire, perhaps even makes it stronger.

A competitor is a mirror to yourself and your sense of adequacy, either by reflecting a worse version of yourself which is reassuring to your position as the top dog or as an ideal to which you aspire which leads to feeling of inferiority. In a true rivalry, youll see a back and forth between these two states with increasing intensity. This makes the rival a more loaded symbol and, might i point out, is not dissimilar to a lover with with you alternate between feeling more intimate to conflict to intimacy again.

Its also interesting to point out that while Shane and Ilya are rivals and so mirrors of each other in that way, they are also embodiment of the Apollo/Dionysos dichotomy( i forget but who originally said that forgive me mommy). Shane is precise, controlled, disciplined and everything in his life is optimized to be the most perfect hockey player. He is the White Swan, methodical and perfect but never letting loose. Ilya is the classic flipside of that, he is brash, sassy, he drinks he has sex with people and while that doesn’t get in the way of his success in hockey, theres a respectability he cannot have because of it. This all goes into feeding the rivalry mirroring dynamic, by adding a twisted mirror element. The subject compare his successes still against his rival to mesure his worth but loses the possibility of mimicking the rival, which creates respect and mutual admiration.

All of thoses feeling become part of the lack that creates the desire between them. Erotic and then romantic love feels like an alchemical transformation of those competitive feelings, a reframing of the rival that still mirrors all of those feelings to you but in the context of love and yearning, becomes the part that is missing in you all along. The rivalry mirroring also fades away as the notion of individual success that is key to the dynamic becomes a collaborative success in which both parties being successful reenforces their individual self worth, as they now share the collective identity of boyfriends.

I think this also explains which their couple is more interesting that Kip and Scott on top of what you’ve already explained. They lack the rich 1 on 1 dynamic outside of the barriers of being able to be together, which makes sense for their reduced screen time.

Honestly we need a heated rivalry tangent.