In the same week Viktor Myrnikov earns his first NHL contract with the San Francisco Pilots, he loses his entire former team—and his clandestine boyfriend Nikolai—in a catastrophic plane crash. Grappling with a new league, language, and culture under a grief he cannot share, Viktor presents another challenge for General Manager Liliya Aleyev. Liliya—the NHL’s first female GM, daughter of the team owner, step-mother to Nikolai, and wife of hockey superstar Kirill Stepnov—wrestles for professional and personal control in her deteriorating franchise, marriage, and connection to her father, even as she mourns the only child she’ll ever have. When Kirill asks Viktor to give up his NHL dreams for the rebuilt Russian team and to out himself in the process, Viktor must weigh his career and safety against the potential for a better future.
In the same week Viktor Myrnikov earns his first NHL contract with the San Francisco Pilots, he loses his entire former team—and his clandestine boyfriend Nikolai—in a catastrophic plane crash. Grappling with a new league, language, and culture under a grief he cannot share, Viktor presents another challenge for General Manager Liliya Aleyev. Liliya—the NHL’s first female GM, daughter of the team owner, step-mother to Nikolai, and wife of hockey superstar Kirill Stepnov—wrestles for professional and personal control in her deteriorating franchise, marriage, and connection to her father, even as she mourns the only child she’ll ever have. When Kirill asks Viktor to give up his NHL dreams for the rebuilt Russian team and to out himself in the process, Viktor must weigh his career and safety against the potential for a better future.