On Oct. 8, 2005, the Pittsburgh Penguins had a 5-4 lead over the Boston Bruins with just under two minutes left in the second period at the Civic Arena.
The Penguins were pressing in the offensive zone, and Mark Recchi caused the puck to come loose on the right side of the crease. It found an 18-year-old Sidney Crosby wide open for his first career NHL goal. The 2005 first-overall pick skated into the corner with his arms in the air while fans in attendance erupted in excitement.
Behind Crosby as he celebrated were David and Randy Frankel, who had the best view in the house to experience this historic moment in Pittsburgh sports.
“I remember that he scored, and coincidentally skated right over to us with his back against the glass,” said David, who was just 16 at the time. “In the video, you can see that I have a disposable camera. I’m jumping up and down, and he throws his back to the glass celebrating.”
David’s instant reaction was to get the perfect shot, thinking that it was his only chance to capture the moment, not fully realizing he would be in the background of the photographers’ lenses. They say a photo is worth a thousand words, and that could never be truer for this once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“It was actually that day that people said they might’ve seen us on TV,” said David, on how they found out that they were in the photo of Crosby’s goal celebration. “It was on the front page of the sports section the next day, and it was that same angle. Then it also appeared on Sports Illustrated.”
Randy has been running a youth baseball league for over 38 years now. A few years after that memorable moment, one of the children’s parents recognized that he was in the photo, and gifted him Crosby’s rookie card.
Funny enough, this wasn’t the first time that Randy had the chance to be a part of some historic moments in sports.
“The exciting thing about my dad is that he's like the Where's Waldo of famous sports photos,” David said. “I remember it was 2000, it was a Senior PGA Golf Championship. My dad and I were visiting my grandma in Florida, and we went to see Arnold Palmer playing his last Senior PGA Championship. And there, of course, is a photo in Sports Illustrated that appears with my dad and me in the background on the first tee of Arnold Palmer teeing off.
“There's also a photo in Sports Illustrated where my dad went to the Masters one year and was behind Tiger Woods.”
Not only does Randy seem to have a knack for knowing where to be at the right time, but he also knows the right people.
Earlier that day, when David was in his driver’s ed class, Randy called his son to see if he would want to go see Crosby’s first-ever home game. Luckily for them, Randy had a close friend who worked in the box office and was able to get them a pair of returned tickets. At the time, they had no clue where they would be sitting.
“Somehow, he was able to get us second row tickets,” said David. “I remember walking down the steps and being like, ‘Wow, we’re still going down.’”
It was the second iconic Penguins game that both David and Randy had the chance to be a part of. When Randy first moved to Pittsburgh from New York, it was Mario Lemieux who made him fall in love with Pittsburgh sports. As such, both Randy and David, only 8 at the time, were in attendance for Lemieux’s comeback game on Dec. 27, 2000. Being born in 1989, David has had the chance to see both historic eras of Penguins hockey with Lemieux and Crosby.
“I went to a game recently, and I looked up at the rafters to see all of the Art Ross Trophy winners. From the time that I was born in ’89 to now, it has been over half my life that they have had these amazing players,” David said. “Just feel super spoiled to be able to have these unbelievable memories.”
It certainly goes without saying that David and his father have a unique connection to Crosby’s first career goal. For David, just two years younger than Crosby at the time, he felt like they have grown up together in a sense.
“Because of the age that I was at, and with how Crosby was just 18, I got to follow the journey throughout his career,” David said. “I remember the summer when Pittsburgh got the first overall pick, and how Crosby was going to be the next Wayne Gretzky, and then to be a part of that photo. It just felt like my dad and I were there throughout that whole journey as those super fans.”
Today marked twenty years since that historic moment for Crosby, the beginning of all his success at the NHL level. When Randy looks back on Oct. 8, 2005, he most certainly thinks of the goal, but more importantly, who he was able to witness it with.
“For me, it was being with David and having my son there with me,” Randy said. “To be there for the first Crosby goal and his first home game was really special. Obviously, with how history played out, and now it's even more famous because of the career he's had with the Penguins. But being there with David really was the highlight for me.”
