MILWAUKEE - Seven local heroes were honored at the Milwaukee Admirals game at the Bradley Center on Saturday. But it was a 5-year-old boy who stole the show.

Just three months ago, D.J. Harper was pulled from the flames after a horrific crash. On Saturday, D.J. was all smiles, getting a standing ovation at the Milwaukee Admirals game.

D.J. has come a long way in these three months, but the severe burns he suffered haven't fully healed.

"He's got more surgeries coming up here in the next month," said D.J.'s father Chris Harper.

D.J. got to stand beside seven local heroes at an event before the hockey game. The honorees were Mayor Tom Barrett, who was attacked while helping a woman dial 911, Milwaukee police officers Bryan Norberg and Graham Kunisch, both shot in the line of duty, Elm Grove officer John Krahn, who pulled a woman and child from the path of an oncoming train, and naval officer Jaymz Touchstone, returning from Iraq.

Also honored were John and Joel Rechlitz, the firefighters who saved D.J.'s life. He called them "Uncle John and Uncle Joel" now.

"No doctor would have told you that three months or four months from when the accident happened, he'd be on the ice, dropping the puck, running around, looking at the Zamboni. It's encouraging," said Joel Rechlitz.

D.J. is about to start kindergarten. It will be his first step towards being a normal 5-year-old again.

"I think he'll calm down a little bit, get him with other kids instead of being at home and being around doctors," said Chris Harper.