The Sports Lunatics Show
Shawn Lavigne, a longtime Toronto radio producer, and Howie Mooney, Ottawa television sports personality and author, discuss sports and sports history and delve into why what happened in the past is relevant today. Fun sports talk, lively interviews and always a good time.
Episodes
On June 24, 2025, the Hockey Hall of Fame inducted eight new members and Shawn and Howie were standing by with their thoughts and opinions on the inductees and some of the players who did not make into the class of '25.
In this episode of The Sports Lunatics Show, Howie talks about the Florida Panthers winning the Stanley Cup and their celebrations with the trophy. He talks about Jonathan Toews signing with the Winnipeg Jets and his hopes for next season for Toews and his new team. He also talks about a number of things that happened on June 22 through the course of sports history.
Shawn and Howie had so much fun discussing ChatGPT's Top Ten Stanley Cup Heroes list that they decided to check out a similar list for the Canadian Football League. There were some surprising results, both on the list and off. Give it a listen and see where Russ Jackson ended up.
Jim Marshall was a great defensive end for the Saskatchewan Roughriders, the Cleveland Browns and most notably, the Minnesota Vikings. He was truly an ironman. His NFL career lasted 20 seasons. He was an All-Pro, and the Vikings captain as a member of a stalwart defensive line on those great Vikings teams that went to four Super Bowls. That front four included Carl Eller, Alan Page, Marshall and Gary Larsen and was known around the...
The Sports Lunatics are never afraid of trying something new. With the Stanley Cup Final Series now taking place, Shawn asked ChatGPT to make a list of the Top Ten Stanley Cup Heroes since 1970. Shawn and Howie were somewhat surprised at the players on the list and the order in which the app ranked the players. They sat down to discuss that list in this episode.
As the 2025 NHL Postseason heads into the Final series, Shawn and Howie look at how this year's Panthers-Oilers final series may be different from last year's. They also examine the handshake line, Paul Maurice's take on the coaches and other staff participating in it and how it has evolved from years past to what we see today. They also talk about how animosities in series can manifest themselves in the actual hands...
The Toronto Maple Leafs lost Game 7 in their Atlantic Division Final Series against the Florida Panthers amongst the boos and the tossing of jerseys by the fans that remained in the building. The way they lost incensed and infuriated the team's fans and many were calling for the departures of certain players on the Leafs as well as the job of some in the front office. What does this all mean for the team? How do the Leafs move...
It's a packed show as Shawn and Howie discuss the removal from the Ineligibility List of Pete Rose, Shoeless Joe Jackson and others by Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred and what it all could mean. They also talk about the upcoming recognition of the Pete Rozelle Award by the Pro Football Hall of Fame to Brent Musberger for his career in football broadcasting. Lastly, the boys remember the life and career of White Sox' and...
On May 13, 2025, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred took Pete Rose, Shoeless Joe Jackson off the ineligibility list, allowing them to be included on ballots for Baseball's Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Howie appeared on CJBQ-AM in Belleville, Ontario to discuss this move by Manfred. Listen until the end for a Seinfeldian conclusion with producer Ted Bradford asking Howie a trivia question based on the show.
In the latest Sports Lunatics Show episode, Shawn and Howie get back together after both were involved in the odyssey of moving. Howie is now back in Ottawa, where he grew up. The boys discuss the stroke that forced Gregg Popovich to have to leave his coaching responsibilities for the San Antonio Spurs, the passing of Philadelphia Flyers hard-rock defenseman and two-time Stanley Cup winner Ed Van Impe and they debate whether or not...
The great Philadelphia Flyer defenseman Ed Van Impe passed away on April 29. We wanted to put a segment together that remembered Van Impe, a true hard-rock D-man in an age of them. In his rookie year, he was runner-up for the Calder Trophy as the league's Rookie of the Year to one Bobby Orr. He was a mentor to the many young players that came through the Flyers' organization during his time there and he played an instrume...
Howie is hosting and flying solo and he hits the Wayback Machine to go back to May 4 in 1980, 1989 and 1993. He looks at a night in Bloomington, Minnesota when the Flyers' Bill Barber scored four goals to help his team to a win over the hometown North Stars, then he heads forward to follow the defection of Alexander Mogilny to the United States so he could escape the repression of the Soviet Union and play for real money with ...
In their latest episode, the Sports Lunatics, Shawn and Howie, look at Rory McIlroy winning the 2025 Masters and achieving his career Grand Slam. They talk about why it was such a compelling weekend of golf television. It's NHL Playoff time and the boys talk about the matchups, the combinations and permutations. They also look back on the life and achievements of Ray Shero and then discuss Ray's father Fred who coached th...
Long time NHL executive Ray Shero passed away this week at the age of 62. In this episode of The Sports Lunatics Show, Shawn and Howie look back on Ray's career and they reflect on the career of his father, Fred, as well. Ray was the assistant general manager of the Ottawa Senators, the general manager of the Stanley Cup winning Pittsburgh Penguins, the New Jersey Devils and an advisor to the Minnesota Wild. Both Ray and Fred ...
On Sunday, April 6, 2025, Alex Ovechkin scored a goal against the New York Islanders in a 4-1 Caps loss. That goal was the 895th of his career allowing him to surpass Wayne Gretzky as the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer. Shawn and Howie discuss the day, Ovechkin's feat and whether there might be a present-day player who might be able to pass whatever Ovie's final total might be. There are a bunch of weird and wond...
It seems like there is so much happening at the same time these days. At the same time as Alexander Ovechkin was scoring the goal that broke Wayne Gretzky's NHL record (another episode), Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was agreeing to terms with the Toronto Blue Jays, the hockey world lost Greg Millen, and the Pittsburgh Pirates were dealing with a public relations nightmare while insulting the family of Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente. ...
In this episode of The Sports Lunatics, Shawn and Howie start off with a quote from Bubba Watson about how Scottie Scheffler's 2024 season was better than Tiger Woods' 2000 year. They bring up a number of great years and great eras in golf history in discussing Bubba's quote. They remember the great hockey character who was Mark "Trees" Laforest. And they add their possibly final opinions about Alex Ovechki...
In this episode of The Sports Lunatics Show, Shawn and Howie look back at the life and the many sides of the former heavyweight champion, George Foreman. They also look back on what was the greatest era of boxing in their lifetimes. The good, the bad, the winners and the losers. It's about the life and career of George Foreman.....from his gold medal at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics to his defeating Joe Frazier to win the heav...
This episode began as a discussion of Tiger Woods and his dominance of golf through his prime years and it became a conversation of great and impactful athletes who dominated during the lifetimes of Shawn and Howie. It brought back memories for both of them. Hope you enjoy it.
As they've done many times in the past with other sports figures, Shawn and Howie look back and celebrate the lives of John Feinstein, Al Trautwig, Oliver Miller and Junior Bridgeman.
Popular Podcasts
United States of Kennedy is a podcast about our cultural fascination with the Kennedy dynasty. Every week, hosts Lyra Smith and George Civeris go into one aspect of the Kennedy story.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Welcome to Bookmarked by Reese’s Book Club — the podcast where great stories, bold women, and irresistible conversations collide! Hosted by award-winning journalist Danielle Robay, each week new episodes balance thoughtful literary insight with the fervor of buzzy book trends, pop culture and more. Bookmarked brings together celebrities, tastemakers, influencers and authors from Reese's Book Club and beyond to share stories that transcend the page. Pull up a chair. You’re not just listening — you’re part of the conversation.
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.