Abstract: A coronary bypass system incorporating a minimized extracorporeal blood circulation module is disclosed. In one embodiment, the extracorporeal blood circulation module comprises a rigid support plane for carrying the blood-handling components of the system, including an blood pump, an oxygenator, a filter, a venous blood reservoir, and a sampling manifold. The extracorporeal blood circulation module is pre-configured to interconnect all of the blood-handling modules, such that total interconnective tubing length is minimized and interfacing with an overall heart-lung bypass console can be accomplished with maximum efficiency. In one embodiment, the venous blood reservoir is of the soft-shell variety mounted over a raised platform defined in the front surface of the support plane. The raised platform further defines a indention on the front surface of the support plane.