‘We had to find a tablecloth’: Stanley Cup makes appearance at Johnny’s Hideaway

Huff previously worked at Georgia Tech for more than a decade and rose to become the director of football operations during coach Paul Johnson’s tenure, according to the athletic department’s website.

Pendergrass told the AJC he held the same role at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, which is how he and Huff became close friends. Pendergrass now works at Real SLX, a sports and entertainment experience club that he cofounded, and has lived in Atlanta for about 10 years.

Pendergrass explained that the NHL requires whoever is spending the day with the Stanley Cup to submit a detailed itinerary, including contacts at each location throughout the day. And Huff had big plans for his second-ever day with the Cup.

“Mike said that this year, he wanted to do some stuff that was more about other people,” Pendergrass said. In bringing the Cup to Atlanta, Huff was able to share his celebration with some key colleagues and partners who had been important to his career.

The day started with a Delta flight from Fort Lauderdale and a first stop at the airline’s Atlanta headquarters, Pendergrass said. Delta provides the Florida Panthers’ charter flights, and Huff has a relationship with the Atlanta company dating back to his time at Georgia Tech, according to Pendergrass.

Next, the Stanley Cup traveled to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, where it was shared with patients and staff members, Pendergrass said. Then, the Cup moved to Alpharetta City Center to be shared with youth hockey players from the area. News of the Stanley Cup’s arrival got out in Alpharetta, and about 2,000 people showed up, Pendergrass said.

Huff then took the trophy to Dunwoody Country Club, where it stood for pictures with some of his friends and former colleagues.

Pendergrass said Huff wanted to spend the evening celebrating at a few bars and restaurants he considered iconic in Atlanta. The evening started in the Wine Room at the St. Regis, where Huff sabered open a bottle of Champagne, which he and his friends drank from the trophy’s bowl. Huff then carried the Stanley Cup a few hundred feet over to the Club at Chops, where they all had dinner, Pendergrass said.

Daurio connected with the group when they arrived at Johnny’s Hideaway around 10 p.m.

Though he grew up in Georgia and said he’s not a hockey fan, Daurio was impressed by the reaction from the crowd at the sight of the Stanley Cup. After Huff took the trophy for a spin around the dance floor, Daurio and his team set it up on a table to allow people to take photos with it.

“We had to find a tablecloth,” Daurio said in a wry tone.

Daurio said Huff invited him to take a photo together, lifting the 38-pound Stanley Cup over their heads — a rare opportunity for someone outside the NHL to heft the trophy. He said the silver cup was constantly flanked by two NHL staffers who did not let it out of their sight. They kept a watchful eye, Daurio said, but the pair never had to interrupt anyone’s interaction with the Cup.

Huff and his friends left Johnny’s after 11 p.m. with less than an hour before the end of his time with the Stanley Cup at midnight. Their next destination was another icon of late nights in Atlanta: Waffle House.