LOS ANGELES — Jason Northgrave was there in early January with the rest of the El Segundo, California, Fire Department battling the Palisades blaze, one of a series of wildfires that has devastated Southern California.

Northgrave was one of several area first responders joining former NHL players and celebrities to play hockey at Skate for LA Strong, an event that the Los Angeles Kings, in partnership with the NHL, put together to support the fire recovery efforts in the area.

“Immediately there was an outpouring of love and support for us and what we were doing, which we felt,” the fireman said at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday. “So, to do something like this, it’s just phenomenal. It’s just a blessing. We’re super thankful for it. Plus, it’s a fun game to play. There are so many great things about this.”

Roger Sackaroff was a sports reporter in New York when he said the attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, “changed the perspective of what I was doing, and I felt I had a bigger impact to make.” He’s been with the Los Angeles City Fire Department for the past 17 years.

“It’s super overwhelming,” Sackaroff said. “I mean, we don’t do this for the thanks. We do it for the service. We’re not used to getting the thank you. We usually do the job, and we leave. So, it’s just really overwhelming and we’re so grateful and it’s really special.”

Four teams played in two semifinals that featured two 10-minute periods and a running clock. Team Blue, coached by actor Danny DeVito and play-by-play sports broadcaster Al Michaels, advanced to the 10-minute final, where it played Team Red, coached by actors Vince Vaughn and Cobie Smulders.

Team Red won 4-0.

“It’s terrible to have an event like that to take moments like this, but for the Kings to organize (this) and not just for the city of Los Angeles to come together, the state of California, but for the whole country today, for people all over to be pouring in support, it says a lot about who we are as people when these things happen,” Vaughn said after the event.

“So, it was special to be part of this and to see all the love and support come from everywhere.”

A QR code was displayed throughout the game and all proceeds from the event will be donated to the Red Cross, the L.A. Fire Foundation and Eaton Canyon Fire Relief and Recovery Fund.

The fires last month resulted in economic losses totaling more than $250 billion, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“What the Los Angeles Kings have done and what (NHL Commissioner) Gary Bettman is doing to put an event of this magnitude together is great,” actor David Boreanaz said.

“I know a lot of people who have lost their homes and in speaking with them, it doesn’t stop. The grief doesn’t stop. It stays with them. This is an opportunity to give some healing.”

As difficult the circumstances are that brought everyone together, Sunday provided a lot of great feelings and fun.

First responders were the first players introduced for each team, the firemen wearing their helmets onto the ice. Actor Ben Hollingsworth got into a “fight” with former NHL defenseman P.K. Subban to try and get something going for Team White, which was down 5-0 entering the second period of its game with Team Blue. Team White still lost.

When Team Black, coached by Snoop Dogg and Will Ferrell, got down 3-0 near the end of the first period, Snoop said: “Everybody on our team, get in the game. We’ve got to figure this out.”

After a goal from 2024 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Jeremy Roenick put Team Red up 5-0 on Team Black, Justin Bieber started sparring with him.

“Just a lot of good energy. There was good energy in the building, and we had the best energy on the bench, there’s no question,” Roenick said. “There was some yelling going on, coaches were yelling at us. It felt like a real game out there.”

Bieber was into it from the start. After introductions, he skated crouched down while slapping gloves with his teammates, then knocking his fist against the glass to the appreciation of the fans.

Sunday’s event didn’t erase the catastrophic damage done by the fires in the Los Angeles area, but for a day, the hockey and entertainment world joined together with some of the community’s best to try and heal.

“It’s a long road forward, a long road ahead. We know that; we can’t kid ourselves. But this helps us kind of move forward,” said Michaels, who called the United States’ win against the USSR in the “Miracle on Ice” on Feb. 22, 1980, and the U.S.’s gold-medal triumph against Finland two days later at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics.

“I’d rather look through the windshield than the rear-view mirror because we want to sit there and lament what happened. It’s sad, it’s terrible, it’s horrendous,” Michaels said. “People have been suffering like crazy and will for a while. But if you have events like this, it adds a little spirit and throws a little sunshine into an otherwise dark environment.”