TORONTO – It’s been a busy first six months for Michael Friisdahl as president and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment.

Toronto hosted the NBA all-star game. The Raptors and Marlies went deep into the playoffs. The Maple Leafs continued their rebuild and won the draft lottery. And Toronto FC returned to a newly renovated BMO Field.

Through it all, unlike predecessor Tim Leiweke, Friisdahl (pronounced FREEZE-dale) has been content to shun the limelight.

“Really the teams are the stars,” he said.

On a rare day of interviews to mark six months at the helm, the MLSE CEO is happy to defer praise to team presidents Brendan Shanahan (Leafs), Masai Ujiri (Raptors) and Bill Manning (TFC).

“There’s been a lot of excitement,” said Friisdahl. “But of course I was also very fortunate because when I got here we had great leadership in each one of these teams, whether it’s Bill or Masai or Brendan. A lot of the infrastructure for these events had been put in place. So the guys here have really done a terrific job executing on that strategy.”

It’s a common theme during the interview. Mention a positive in MLSE and Friisdahl will redirect the compliment to the executive or department in question.

The 54-year-old Friisdahl is no hermit. He spoke at the re-opening of BMO Field and proudly attended the MLSE LaunchPad tour during NBA all-star week, showing off a planned centre for sport, education and research in downtown Toronto.

Just don’t expect him to bang his own drum. He will speak highly of his company, however, when asked what has struck him since taking the job.

“There’s a lot to MLSE,” he said, listing off assets from sports teams to its music, restaurant and real estate arms. “It’s a really well-run and -respected organization … And, of course, we carry a huge responsibility. Our teams are the fabric of the city and so it’s a big focus for our ownership, it’s a big focus for us as MLSE and, of course, for each one of our leaders in the sports vertical.”

He also cites the passion of Toronto’s fans, noting with pride Cleveland star LeBron James’s emotional tribute to the ACC crowd after the Eastern Conference final.

“We really have arguably the best fans in the NBA and that is true for each one of our sports,” Friisdahl said.

He says one of the company’s driving forces is to ensure its businesses are firing on all cylinders, “so that we can really focus on supporting our teams even more in terms of their quests to become championship teams.”

That means giving Shanahan, Ujiri and Manning what they need.

“They’re the experts in each one of their fields, it’s not me, it’s not us here at MLSE.”

Friisdahl previously served as president and chief executive officer of Air Canada’s Leisure Group which combined Air Canada Vacations with the low-cost Air Canada Rouge division. Before that, he was CEO of Thomas Cook North America.

He has promised to tend to the fan experience and says MLSE is concentrating on figuring out the future of the sports experience in the arena and watching at home while finding ways to keep fans engaged year-round.

“How do we interact? How do we make ourselves more relevant to our fans? How do we get more of a dialogue going between our teams and our fans and how can we be more interactive?”

That includes providing more statistics and more relevant replays in the arena.

“I think we have a terrific (fan) experience today, but it’s going to continue to evolve and we need to be on the forefront of that,” he said.

MLSE has already dipped its toe into this, beefing up scoreboard stats during the NBA playoffs. Friisdahl promises more will come.

He often makes the short walk from his office to the adjoining Air Canada Centre, saying he has been to every game he could attend, “which is most of them.”

“I move around,” he says when asked where he sits.

He says he regularly engages fans, although one wonders whether they know him given his low profile.

“Well it’s actually not that important for them to know who I am,” he says when asked about it. “It’s important for them to understand that we as an organization are committed to really driving whatever it takes to ensure their teams become championship teams.

“So I’m not really that relevant in that process. I’m the guy who’s working with everyone to try to make that happen as fast as possible. And at the same time make sure that we focus on what’s important to our fans.”

As to MLSE’s somewhat complicated ownership — media rivals Rogers and Bell each own 37.5 per cent while Larry Tanenbaum, through his company Kilmer Sports, owns 25 per cent — Friisdahl says it works because everyone is vested in the success of the teams.

There is plenty ahead on the MLSE horizon, including the Grey Cup and hockey’s Centennial Classic at BMO Field.

As for the Leafs’ centennial year in 2017, Friisdahl says MLSE has big plans although he won’t confirm whether the hockey team will unveil a marketing campaign to match the Raptors’ successful “We the North.”

“We’re going to celebrate our past 100 years,” he said. “But we’re also going to celebrate the next 100 years. So we’re going to focus on where we’ve been, but also equally on where we’re going and how we’re going to get there.”

While the Maple Leafs finished last in the NHL this season, the vibe around the team was amazingly positive with many buying into the rebuild under coach Mike Babcock

“The fans in Toronto have been super-loyal to the Leafs for many, many, many years. We also have a very sophisticated fan base in hockey,” said a grateful Friisdahl.

“I think there’s good reason to have optimism,” he added.

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