Shoresy is a Canadian television comedy series created by and starring Jared Keeso that premiered on Crave on May 13, 2022.[1][2] A spinoff of Letterkenny, the series focuses on the titular character of Shoresy (Keeso) as he moves to Sudbury to take a job with a struggling Triple A–level ice hockey team, the Sudbury Bulldogs.[3]
In the United States, the series premiered on Hulu on May 27, 2022.[4] A second season was announced in January 2023,[5] which premiered on September 29, 2023.[6] In October 2023, the series was renewed for a third season,[7] which premiered on May 24, 2024.[8] In June 2024, The Globe and Mail reported that season 4 was set to begin filming.[9]
Premise
After losing 20 straight games and running dead last in the four-team Triple A-levelNorthern Ontario Senior Hockey Organization (NOSHO), the Sudbury Bulldogs are faced with being completely shut down. In an attempt to save the team, veteran player Shore ("Shoresy") makes a bet with team general manager Nat that the team will never lose again if he's given a chance to take control. With the help of new coach Sanguinet, a roster of new players, and the dissolution of the team on the line, Shoresy sets out to prove that the Bulldogs can play as a team, get bums in seats, and make a name for themselves. He rebuilds the team with veteran players who share his philosophy that it's not enough to "love to win", they have to "hate to lose".
Cast
Main
Jared Keeso as "Shoresy" Shore (known as "Waffle" by his foster family)
Shoresy is played by Jared Keeso, but within Letterkenny he is only seen in contexts that obscured his face as Keeso simultaneously plays the leading role of Wayne.[10] Justin Stockman of Bell Media explained the decision to proceed with a Shoresy spinoff by noting that he is one of the most popular characters in Letterkenny merchandising, and acknowledging the creative potential involved in building on the story of a character about whom very little is known in the original show.[2]
Production on the series launched in November 2021 in Sudbury.[11] Production locations have included the Sudbury Community Arena.[12]
During the tenth-season Letterkenny episode "VidVok", Tanis explains to Wayne that she managed to get Shore a position on the Sudbury Bulldogs and will be moving soon, setting up the Shoresy series. The show's first teaser trailer was released in February 2022.[13]
Like Letterkenny, the show has received praise for its efforts to include fully rounded and nuanced portrayals of its First Nations characters, which was accomplished in part by including actress Kaniehtiio Horn, who plays Tanis in the original Letterkenny, as a producer tasked in part with ensuring that the indigenous characters were written and portrayed realistically.[14] The series has also received positive notice for inverting the stereotypical gender dynamics in hockey by placing women in power positions as the team's manager, her two assistants and the sports journalist who covers the team for The Sudbury Star, noting that in Letterkenny "Part of the secret ... is that although the men seem to be the focal point of the story and the women seem to be objectified in endless slo-mo walk-ups, the men are all trapped in different stages of arrested development and the women are truly in charge."[15]
While Sudbury serves as a backdrop for the fictional town of Letterkenny in the series, the city is fully represented as itself in Shoresy. The city is featured prominently in the new series and "the dialogue is rife with quippy mentions of Sudbury landmarks". The various hockey scenes take place at the Sudbury Community Arena, complete with advertising for local businesses on the boards and the Sudbury Wolves logo can be seen in several background shots.[16] The series also features numerous real-life downtown Sudbury food and entertainment venues, including the Coulson nightclub, Peppi Panini and the Laughing Buddha.[17]
The show has also partnered with the real-life Sudbury Wolves on charitable fundraising initiatives, including special limited-edition Sudbury Bulldogs jerseys that would be worn by the Wolves players in an OHL game before being auctioned off to raise funds.[18] The cast also regularly plays a series of hockey games against NHL alumni, in character as the Bulldogs, under the Shoresy Classic banner.[19][20][21]
The National Senior Tournament begins and the Bulldogs are hurt.
14
2
"Charlottetown Reds"
Sean Skene
Jared Keeso
May 24, 2024 (2024-05-24)
The Bulldogs play the Charlottetown Reds and their captain Gorgeous Gord Gallant.
15
3
"Vaughan Canadesi"
Sean Skene
Jared Keeso
May 31, 2024 (2024-05-31)
The Bulldogs face off against the Vaughan Canadesi and the dirty Sly Sylvestri.
16
4
"Brooks Barrelmen"
Dan Skene
Jared Keeso
June 7, 2024 (2024-06-07)
The Bulldogs celebrate their NOSHO record and take on the Brooks Barrelmen and the Freezer twins.
17
5
"SOO Hunt"
Dan Skene
Jared Keeso
June 14, 2024 (2024-06-14)
The Bulldogs attempt to redeem themselves against the SOO Hunt with Shoresy forced off the ice.
18
6
"Les Rapides De Rawdon"
Dan Skene
Jared Keeso
June 21, 2024 (2024-06-21)
The Bulldogs compete against Marie-Mai’s Rapides de Rawdon.
Critical response
In advance of the series premiere, John Doyle of The Globe and Mail praised the show, writing that "In the spirit of Letterkenny, the humour is funny, mad, droll, childish and spiky. Full of salty Canadian vernacular, it soars. There are more visual jokes than you might find in the average episode of Letterkenny, but the flavour is the familiar tone of boldly irreverent, and it is sometimes slashing satire with more puns than you can count. In an expected but delightful way, Shoresy is Letterkenny refreshed. Who knew that a series that opened some years ago with the line, 'A coupla hockey players came up the lane way the other day,' could eventually unleash this great spinoff?"[23]
Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter described the series as essentially an updated version of the 1977 film Slap Shot, praising it both for humanizing the character of Shoresy, and for placing women and First Nations characters in positions of strength.[15]Michael Hollett of NEXT Magazine wrote that Shoresy is "a fast-paced show with a more linear narrative and explicit plot than Letterkenny", and praised it for lacking the stiffness and awkwardness that often plagues television series about hockey.[24]
