Brian Kilrea has missed only one training camp with the Ottawa 67’s since 1974 and, despite having triple bypass heart surgery at the Ottawa Heart Institute last Thursday, expects to be back for his 38th camp next week.

Kilrea is due to return home from hospital on Wednesday.

“He’s doing well,” his wife, Judy, said Tuesday. “Looking back at everything, we can say, ‘Wasn’t he lucky?’ I guess.”

Kilrea, 77, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, spent 35 years as coach and/or general manager of the 67’s before stepping down as GM following the 2010-11 season. He now serves as a scouting and adviser for the organization.

The heart problems came as a surprise, according to Judy Kilrea, considering he had been golfing on an almost daily basis during the hottest part of the summer.

However, Kilrea didn’t feel well while playing in a golf tournament on Aug. 11 and returned home early. Judy Kilrea noticed his “colour didn’t look good,” but he insisted he was fine. She awoke to Kilrea having a shower at 3 a.m. When she prompted him about why he was showering at such an odd hour, he responded that it was time to go to the hospital.

Following an angiogram, Kilrea was taken to the Heart Institute to prepare for the surgery.

“It was all pretty surprising and we didn’t expect it at all,” Judy Kilrea said. “But it’s all good news. He’s walking the stairs at the hospital and (Wednesday) he’s coming home. They’ve told him not to do too much and that he’ll be very tired.”

Kilrea took over as 67’s coach during the 1974-75 season. He was with the New York Islanders for the 1984-85 and 1985-86 seasons, but even then he wasn’t far away. While working with the Islanders in 1984, Kilrea attended 67’s camp to help short-lived coach Cliff Stewart with the difficult task of releasing players.

While current coach and GM Chris Byrne is now the boss, Kilrea remains a sounding board and he would be lost without being able to see the returning veterans and rookies arriving for a new season. Club owner Jeff Hunt told the Team 1200-AM on Tuesday that he expects Kilrea to be at the rink when the 2012-13 version of the team first steps on the ice Aug. 30 at the Fred Barrett Arena.

Written by: Ken Warren, Ottawa Citizen

[email protected]@ Citizenkwarren