The fire department scored two unanswered goals and slammed the door shut defensively in the third period to win, 4-3.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The fire and police departments for the City of Grand Rapids are united by a shared mission to serve their community.

But that bond melts away once they take the ice against each other each year in a rivalry hockey game for charity.

“Off the ice, it’s generally pretty good,” said police officer Richard Lee. “On the ice, we hate the guys. It’s a good rivalry.”

Lee and the police department have dominated the rivalry as of late, winning the last three games. On Saturday afternoon at Van Andel Arena, with a 3-2 lead in the second period, it looked like they were headed for a fourth straight win.

But the fire department scored two unanswered goals and slammed the door shut defensively in the third period to win, 4-3.

“It was a good run,” said Lee. “But, we wanted four in a row, five in a row, six in a row. You know, the whole LeBron thing. Seven, eight, nine. It’s gonna hurt, but actually it might be better for our program. It kind of might light the fire under everybody’s butts.”

The GRFD bench erupted as the final horn sounded.

“It’s been three years, three hard fought battles,” said Mike Walker, the team captain for the fire department. “This year, we really kind of battled it out and kept pushing. It feels really good right now.”

All proceeds from ticket and merchandise sales go to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Last year’s game raised almost $8,000 alone in ticket sales, according to the Grand Rapids Griffins.

“We love both coming out here,” said Walker. “We love playing hockey. We love that it’s for a good cause. You can’t ask for a better day.”

Grand Rapids Fire Chief Brad Brown expects the celebration to continue long past this weekend.

“Usually in the parade we’ll throw a trophy on top of the front bumper,” said Brown.

Brown did not play, but he hoisted the trophy on the ice after the game along with the team members.

“It’s nice to have this [trophy] for a year,” Brown said. “PD can come visit it at fire headquarters anytime they want.”