This is one of the moments Mark Chipman envisioned when he signed a cheque for $180 million and landed a National Hockey League franchise.

A city engulfed in playoff fever. A team united, convinced it can do some damage. A coach and management team working in tandem, humming along like a well-tuned V-8.

The automobile business never produced this kind of rush or garnered this level of attention. Nobody publicly shouts out the corporate name of that arm of the family empire.

Yet you won't find the man driving True North Sports and Entertainment basking in the spotlight very often — if ever.

Chipman won't draw attention to himself like basketball's Mark Cuban, he won't meddle like football's Jerry Jones and you won't find him updating a daily blog like outspoken fellow NHL governor Ted Leonsis.

As pro sports owners go, he's as buttoned-down as they come, and not particularly easy to pin down for an interview.

But he agreed to sit down with the Sun's Paul Friesen in advance of his team's first appearance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

An edited version of the interview follows.

Friesen: What's it like for you to see your organization reach this stage?

Chipman:It's gratifying, for sure. Because it's what you're trying to do. That's why you're in the business — to win hockey games.

Friesen: It took four years to get here. How does that compare to the time-frame you first envisioned?

Chipman: I don't know that I ever had a clear vision of how long it would take. I had a hope we would make the playoffs in the first year. It wasn't as though it was some far, distant expectation. I don't think we had any illusions that we were contending for the Stanley Cup right away. You just want to make progress every year.

Friesen: What do you make of the reaction in the community?

Chipman: The way my phone blew up on Thursday night, that was probably as good an indication as any. From Randy Carlyle to Claude Noel — just well-wishes from all kinds of people I've known throughout my life. Whether it's at the grocery store or whatever — people just seem really happy and that's probably the most gratifying thing of all.

Friesen: Some 15 months ago the community didn't feel this way. It seemed the organization was spinning its wheels. And your fans were vocal. How did that affect you?

Chipman: When we came to that crossroads and we hadn't succeeded, it was difficult, no doubt about it. We had to make a very difficult decision. You hit a road block, you go around it. It's not like we were backing up. It didn't feel like we had failed.

Friesen: How much of a turning point was hiring Paul Maurice?

Chipman: It was an important turning point. We were very fortunate. I don't think we would have made the decision if Paul hadn't been available. It was largely made because we were convinced of Paul's abilities, not so much of Claude's lack of ability. Claude is a really, really good hockey coach that just didn't fit into the circumstance.

Friesen: Wrong place, wrong time?

Chipman: Yes.

Friesen: And Paul — simply right place, right time?

Chipman: He was the right fit for our group. You can't lose sight of the fact he's just coached his 1,200th NHL game. And the experience and the confidence that comes with that is hard to measure. Obviously he's really, really good at his craft.

Friesen: What's the single biggest thing Paul has done?

Chipman: It's so many things. He found the identity of our team, and brought it out. But he's got just a natural leadership gift that is very obvious. He understands the game, and not just the technical aspects. He understands people. And he's got a humility to him that is really remarkable for a guy who's had as much success as I think he's had.

Friesen: How do you feel about the job your GM has done? He's taken some heat in the past, including from me, for not doing anything.

Chipman: Obviously I'd formed a high opinion of his abilities before we hired him. And I had an equally if not higher opinion of his character. I'm not surprised. This is what we expected, to be honest.

Friesen: But it seems he's changed this season. I mean, all the trades, after never making one.

Chipman: It's not like he had his door shut and his phone off, and all of a sudden said, 'OK, now I'm going to do something.' There was just nothing that made sense that would have made us better along the path. If there had been, we would have done it.

Friesen: But even the blockbuster trade (the Evander Kane deal) ... you don't know it's going to make you better. It took some guts to do that.

Chipman: For sure it did. You never know. And time will tell. We gave up two very good hockey players. That said, everybody is very pleased with the way it's worked out so far.

Friesen: Does he have to OK a deal like that with you?

Chipman: He doesn't have to. I would be apprised of the thinking. He shares that responsibility widely. He calls upon the collective mindset of our pro scouting group and considers it very deeply. And Kevin's decisive. When he's gonna go, he's gonna go. It came incrementally. It wasn't all of a sudden, boom — and this was it.

Friesen: Is any further success now gravy?

Chipman: I don't feel like we snuck in. We had 99 points. I don't think our team thinks this is gravy, now. We deserve to be here. This is a good team. This is a really good team.

Friesen: This team has changed personalities, hasn't it? It's striking.

Chipman: There's never in my mind ever been a time where I felt like they didn't care or weren't really committed. But this is a unique group. It's obvious they really do like and care about one another. Of all the ingredients that are necessary to win hockey games, that's an essential one to me.

Friesen: It must be gratifying, because you have to create an environment where that can happen.

Chipman: You do. You can't manufacture it. You can't will it. It's organic. And it comes from a lot of different places. And in my opinion it comes largely from Paul Maurice. And the players play a huge role in it as well. It's their team.

paul.friesen@sunmedia.ca

Twitter: @friesensunmedia