Ilya Rozanov’s Bottom Teeth

Like many people I’ve been enjoying a mild obsession with Heated Rivalry, since I started watching in mid-December 2025. If you don’t know, it’s a low-budget yet high-quality gay hockey romance TV show produced by Jason Tierney, based on books by Rachel Reid. For me, the romantic fantasy, queer joy and cinematic excellence of it all has been a welcome antidote to the utter horrors of the real world circa 2026.

Sometime between my second and third rewatch, probably while scrolling through close-up fan edits on YouTube, I became entranced by main character, Ilya Rozanov’s, twisted teeth. I was curious about whether a tooth archetypes analysis of his bottom incisors would work with the fictional Russian hockey player’s backstory. So this is a light-hearted essay about tooth archetypes on Heated Rivalry (with a couple of mild spoilers for the show and books).

What are tooth archetypes?

At the heart of my book, The Secret Lives of Teeth, there are thirty-two detailed descriptions of archetypes that sum up the unique energetic imprint of each adult tooth. I developed these archetype descriptions from working with coaching clients to understand the underlying metaphysical influences on tooth or gum problems located in different parts of their mouths.

Tooth archetypes gets activated by your experience with three ‘S’s’: Silence, Secrets or Suppressed emotions. When a trauma involving of the ‘S’s’ affects the qualities of a tooth archetype in way that is character defining, that tooth may shift out of alignment

This essay a rare chance for me to share any tooth archetypal character analysis because most performers have had their teeth fixed into a generic Hollywood smile which says nothing.  (And I wouldn’t even think about such an in-depth visual interpretation of teeth belonging to someone in real life without their consent.)

All quotes in this essay are from Chapter 9: Mapping with Tooth Archetypes, in my book The Secret Lives of Teeth (2023).

Disclaimer

Yes, I know the teeth belong to the actor, Connor Storrie. They are not a prosthetic he’s wearing to play the character of Ilya Rozanov. But I don’t know anything about Connor Storrie’s life history and family influences that would guide an interpretation of his crooked incisors.

The archetypes for each of the four lower incisors are much more complex and varied than just the themes discussed below. What I’m saying about Ilya’s teeth are just some of the many possible ways to interpret the four lower incisor archetypes.

Connor and anyone else with similar teeth will have their own particular spin on the archetypes.

As with any metaphysical discussion of oral health, this should be considered as complementary (rather than alternative) to physical explanations. When it comes to your oral health, please use common sense and seek support from a dental professional.

What is going on in Ilya’s mouth?

Here’s a screen grab from episode 5 when Ilya visits Shane in the hospital, with a close up camera angle and lighting that make his snaggle teeth more visible.

From his right to left, tooth #26 (the Guardian archetype of the right lateral incisor) is tucked behind Ilya’s most prominent tooth #25 (the Beast archetype of the right central incisor) which twists at a convex angle with #24 (the Doll archetype of the left central incisor), which juts out prominently in front of #23 (the Martyr archetype of the left lateral incisor). 

 Central incisors: Beast and Doll archetypes

The most prominent tooth, #25, the Beast archetype on the right side, embodies the persona which Ilya presents to the world: self-confident, wilful and cheeky. It represents his drive to succeed in a sport where he is rewarded for being aggressive, strong, fast and extremely competent. The Beast tooth embodies Ilya’s willingness to be outrageous, trouble seeking, and uninhibited.

This tooth’s prominence can also represent the trauma of being raised by a ‘violent, strict [father] who did not tolerate failure and who both provoked …anger and punished for its expression’.* Ilya’s father is only ever seen as cruel, controlling and critical.

The concave angle between teeth #24 and #25 without any overlap means these two central incisors mirror each other as equals. This arrangement suggests that the Doll archetype on the left is just as strong an element of Ilya’s character as the Beast on the right.

Ilya’s Doll side is only revealed to us in his most personal relationships though, as left teeth generally connect to our private lives. The impact of his mother’s life and death is apparent in this tooth.

Most notably, this Doll tooth embodies the way that Ilya passively succumbs to his ‘powerful, overbearing and inconsiderate’ father*. I sometimes call the Doll archetype a people-pleasing tooth.

Ilya’s willingness to accept emotional domination is not only apparent with his father and brother, but also with Shane; at least once they’ve acknowledged their relationship as lovers boyfriends and not just professional rivals and secret hook-ups**.

Lateral incisors: Guardian and Martyr archetypes

The lower lateral incisors embody Ilya’s character quite perfectly too. The lateral incisor on the left, tooth #23, is the Martyr archetype. It embodies Ilya’s ‘vulnerability, victimization and self-sacrifice’ in relation to his Russian family in Heated Rivalry***.

The #23 tooth’s subordinate position represents how Ilya is exploited by his brother, is powerless in relation to his father and (at least at the Sochi Olympics) a martyr to Russian hockey.  

The Martyr tooth archetype can embody ‘thinking that you don’t deserve the kind of relationship you really want’ which sums up Ilya’s feelings about Shane right up until the end of episode 5.

Lateral incisor #26 on the right, the Guardian archetype, which is half covered by the Beast, represents how Ilya protects himself from homophobia in hockey and Russia by keeping Shane at arms length for years.

This tooth #26 is vulnerable to ‘immigrating to a hostile environment where it seems like survival depended on rigid mistrust’*.  Ilya doesn’t seem to have any close friends other than Svetlana, another Russian émigré. He keeps himself safe by not letting anyone else get emotionally close.

He covers up this vulnerability with the Beast’s bolshie extroversion represented by tooth #26’s subordination to tooth #25.

Connor has perfect teeth to play Ilya

Basically Connor Storrie was perfect for the role of Ilya Rozanov, not only because he’s a talented actor, but also because his crooked front teeth fit archetypal qualities of Ilya’s character.

Another way in which Connor’s lower incisors add verisimilitude to his portrayal of Russian Ilya, is that they are still natural. I’ve met many people who grew up in Russia (or the USSR) who have ‘imperfect’ teeth. They often have smiles which are crooked, discolored, heavily filled, metal crowned, or gappy.

Russian dentistry, at least in the past, could be described as… brutal. Compared to the expectations of perfect aesthetics found in American dentistry, most Russian/USSR dentistry seems to have an emphasis on minimal functionality.

Connor Storrie, the American actor, has a very big, mobile mouth, and smiles widely with all his teeth in almost every interview I’ve seen.

But he plays Ilya with a straight face, rare smiles and even rarer glimpses of his fascinating lower incisors. I really hope that Connor doesn’t succumb to Hollywood’s pressure to conform his teeth into boring straightness now that he’s a big star.

Heated Rivalry’s subtle pleasures

One of the most satisfying things about being a fan of the Heated Rivalry show is that it rewards close and repeated viewing with subtle details that build character and reinforce the story on multiple levels.

My pleasure has been enhanced by enjoying expert videos on YouTube reacting to the show with deep dives into everything from camera work, face acting and screen writing; to architecture, lighting and costume; to autism, romantic tropes and hockey rules.

I hope you find my contribution with my analysis of the extremely subtle detail of tooth archetypes in Ilya’s mouth adds to your enjoyment too.

FAQ

Q. If someone has the same kind of crooked incisors as Connor Storrie, does it have the same metaphysical meaning as Ilya’s teeth?

A. No, there are always multiple possible interpretations of each tooth archetype. Everyone’s healing story is unique even if our teeth appear identical.

 *

Q. Can you do a tooth archetype analysis of my teeth?

A. Yes! It’s part of the 1:1 coaching services I offer, and I also often do it for free in my Messages From Your Mouth live videos on Insight Timer.

 *

Q. Can you do a similar tooth archetype analysis of [insert favorite fictional character/celebrity]?

A. I can only do this kind of analysis if the subject’s are visible, and unaltered by veneers or orthodontia and if I can know enough of their backstory to apply the archetype’s meanings. Most actors have had their teeth fixed to look like every other actor’s teeth.  It’s very frustrating, so if you can suggest another main character played by an actor with imperfect natural teeth I’d appreciate it.

* All quotes are from my book The Secret Lives of Teeth (2023)

** Ilya’s pattern of people-pleasing basically drives the plot of Rachel Reid’s The Long Game sequel, so I expect to see him expressing it more in Jason Tierney’s Season 2.

*** And to Shane in The Long Game

The Secret Lives of Teeth

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The Secret Lives of Teeth is a clear and comprehensive guide teaches you a unique, complementary self-help approach to easing toothaches, enhancing enamel and gum remineralization and getting better results with necessary dental treatments. 

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