The Graham Effect

Content Warning: The section of the guide discusses depictions of murder, child abuse, foster care, child neglect, and sexual harassment.

Fifteen-year-old Gigi Graham, daughter of the renowned hockey player Garrett Graham, reminisces about the childhood blunder that earned her the nickname “Stanley” as she gears up to help at her father’s hockey camp. Before the camp’s opening, Gigi takes to the ice and coincidentally encounters 16-year-old Luke Ryder, one of the camp attendees. Luke mistakenly assumes Gigi to be a figure skater, and the two engage in a banter of sharp remarks.

Six years after the prologue, hockey icons Garrett Graham and Jake Connelly convene on their show, Hockey Kings, to dissect the world of college hockey. Their focus today is the merger between Briar University and Eastwood College. Amid their discussion, they delve into the challenges Coach Chad Jensen faces while blending the once bitter rivals—both Division 1 hockey teams—into a unified entity.

In the last week of the off-season, 21-year-old Gigi practices alone until her coach, Tom Adley, interrupts, worried she is overdoing it. Gigi brushes off his concern, reflecting on her Olympic aspirations and frustration with being compared to her father. Adley reveals he is helping Coach Jensen with training camp, which is closed to outsiders, leading Gigi and her teammates to watch discreetly.