BURNABY — Stepping onto the ice at Burnaby’s 8 Rinks is no big deal for legions of recreational hockey players who play there each week.
For Ken Carrusca, though, it was a personal victory last month — and part of a kind of ongoing miracle.
Less than a year ago, on Jan. 14, the 50-year-old was brought back from the brink of death through the intervention of teammates, a referee and an AED after his heart stopped during the first period of a Sunday afternoon Adult Safe Hockey League (ASHL) game.
Ken Carrusca recovers at Vancouver General Hospital after a quadruple bypass operation in January. (via Contributed)“I survived to tell the tale,” he said with a laugh.
Even after getting the green light from doctors in October, though, Carrusca said he was still a little nervous before his first game.
“I was still quite anxious going back to hockey because obviously the last time I played, I didn’t drive home,” he said.
Between shifts, he said he was careful to monitor his heart rate on his Fitbit.
Carrusca said all he wanted to do after past injuries – knee surgery, a broken leg, a torn bicep – was to get back to hockey, but the cardiac arrest has been different.
He’s still not sure whether he’ll keep playing, but he said he needed to prove to himself that he could if he wanted to.
In an emotional Facebook post on the night of his return to hockey, Carrusca gave thanks to all the people who had helped save his life: teammates, an 8 Rinks referee, firefighters, paramedics, staff at Royal Columbian and Vancouver General hospitals, therapists, doctors, friends and family.
He ended the post with a plea.
“If you’ve read this far, make a note to Google St. John Ambulance and sign up for a CPR course,” he wrote. “Someone around you may end up being eternally grateful. I am.”
— Cornelia Naylor, Burnaby Now
