Actors Play Hockey Pros for Charity

In a benefit to raise money for Laguna Beach and Malibu fire victims, two dozen Hollywood personalities took to the ice Wednesday in a spirited, slapstick hockey exhibition featuring the Mighty Ducks and the Kings.

A sellout crowd of more than 17,000 fans jammed Anaheim Arena for the event, which organizers hope will raise $300,000 for the Orange County and Los Angeles chapters of the Red Cross.

In addition to the hockey pros like King star Wayne Gretzky, Thursday’s game rosters included actors Alan Thicke, star of the TV series “Growing Pains,” Jeremy Jackson of “Baywatch” and Jason Hervey from “The Wonder Years.”

Some actors said they were participating in the event because they had friends who had lost their homes in the recent fires.

“I sat and watched TV with some friends of mine who weren’t allowed into their neighborhood because of the fires,” said Thicke, taking a break during the pregame warm-up. “It’s an eerie feeling.”

Breathing a bit heavily, he lounged on the Kings’ bench.

“I shouldn’t expire altogether,” he said. “I play in some amateur leagues so the game is not foreign to me. I’m just not used to this speed and this level.”

Meanwhile, it was easy to spot the hockey fans from the celebrity watchers--mostly conspicuous, swooning teen-agers staked out at the entrance to the players’ dressing rooms.

“There he goes, there he goes!” shrieked one adolescent girl as she spotted Jackson entering the Kings’ locker room.

The girls were not the only ones smitten. Manon Rheaume, a minor league goalie in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization who was the first female hockey player, was a big hit among some of the men on hand.

“She’s brave to be in that goal with all that rubber coming toward you,” said Rick Garcia, 23, an equipment assistant. “She can hold her own--plus she’s pretty too.”

Game highlights included a staged fight between the Hanson brothers from the hockey movie “Slap Shot”; a successful penalty shot by the Kings’ regular goalie, and Disney Chairman Michael Eisner taking a spin atop the ice resurfacing machine.