The Brooklyn cop who shot and killed a knife-swinging maniac in Coney Island — after nearly losing his own life in the confrontation — left the hospital Friday flashing a huge grin as he was greeted by bagpipes and applause.

“We love you!” fellow cops called out to Transit Officer Filippo Gugliara outside Lutheran Medical Center on Friday.

“Good job!” shouted others in the crowd of some 50 cops, as Gugliara flashed a thumbs-up from his wheelchair.

A civilian witness to the scuffle told The Post that Gugliara had worked hard to subdue Oleg Tcherniak, 58, without hurting him, shouting, “Don’t resist! Don’t resist!” as they wrestled on Sea Breeze Avenue.

Gugliara opened fire twice into Tcherniak’s chest only after the maniac slashed at his neck with an 11-inch hunting knife, officials have said.

Afterward, “the cop was all shaken up,” recalled witness Glenn Narcez, 49. “He was yelling on his radio, ‘He pulled a knife on me!’ He said it three or four times.

“The cop was full of nervous energy and checking his neck. You could see he needed help,” said Narcez, a fisherman. “You could see he was all shook up.”

Additional reporting by
Aaron Feis

and
Laura Italiano