Colorful play-by-play commentary? Check. Rabid fans? Yep. A spirited second-period fight? Absolutely. Fast, smooth, world-class hockey? Well, let's not get crazy.

The get-together Sunday between the Blueliners and the Leatherheads wasn't, ahem, Stanley Cup caliber, but that scarcely mattered to the nearly 1,000 fans who filled four sections of the arena to cheer on their favorite public servants.

The Blueliners are a team of Triangle-area police officers, and the Leatherheads are firefighters from across the area. They squared off to raise money for a fallen firefighter fund and to help a couple of their own -- the family of recently deceased Durham Police Officer Charles Callemyn, and Morgan McLamb, a Raleigh firefighter who has brain cancer. The game was free, but donations were accepted.

"Morgan is just one of those people that everybody loves," said Carrie Bowden, a former Durham firefighter who helped organize the event. "We just want to do something special for him."

Some folks, like Raleigh firefighter John Stiver, came out Sunday as a show of support and camaraderie for emergency workers who, he said, are often misunderstood by the general public. "We look out for each other," Stiver said. "It's hard for the average citizen to see through our eyes and see what we see."

Others, like Scott Jennings and Destiney Campbell of Chapel Hill, came for the hockey. Both are big Carolina Hurricanes fans and gleefully grabbed two third-row seats -- $85 each for a Canes game, free on this day -- to eat some hot dogs and watch some puck. Jennings, Campbell and the scores of other hockey fans in attendance got the full Carolina Hurricanes experience.

Holly Wilver sang the national anthem, as she does for Canes games. The action was narrated by Canes TV commentators John Forslund and Tripp Tracy, who kept the mood light by cracking jokes and dropping obscure references to "Slapshot," the hockey movie legendary among hardcore hockey fans.

As during Canes games, each goal was celebrated with three sharp, ear-splitting blasts from the arena's house organ. There was instant replay, a roving camera to show fans on the big screen, and even those goofy sock puppets that dance across the screen when a player ends up in the penalty box.

There were a few actual Canes at the game. Justin Williams and Craig Adams were the special guest coaches for the Leatherheads, while Erik Cole and Chad LaRose ran the bench for the Blueliners. The Leatherheads won, 7-6.