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.
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Episodes
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Sept 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Davey Johnson Remembered
Saturday, September 13, 2025
Howie flies solo on this episode as he remembers the late Davey Johnson. A Gold Glover, 4-time all-star and World Series winning manager, Johnson had a colourful career both on the field and as a field boss. You'll hear some insights into why he left North America for Japan in the mid-70s, how he treated his players "like men", and the fact that he used his mathematical training in university to introduce rudimentary analytics to managing. Johnson was 82 when he passed away on September 5, 2025.
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Sept 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Howie & SiriusXM's Mick Kern Discuss the Passing of Ken Dryden
Saturday, September 6, 2025
On September 5, 2025, Ken Dryden passed away. Dryden was a Hall of Fame goalie, author, Member of Parliament, NHL executive. He was an astute and intelligent man. Yes, he was an athlete, but he was more than that, especially to a generation of kids who saw something different in him. Howie sat down with the NHL Network Channel's Mick Kern from SiriusXM's Under Review Show to discuss the life and the legacy of Ken Dryden.
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Sept 2025 - Sports Lunatics - 1972 Canada-Russia Series - Howie with Terry Mercury from SiriusXM
Friday, September 5, 2025
It's September! Howie and special guest, former SiriusXM reporter Terry Mercury sit down to discuss their memories from around September of 1972. That was when Canada faced the Soviets in their intense eight-game Summit Series. They talk about the games but they also go through their memories and the feelings they experienced through that whole time window. It's truly a lively conversation between a couple of guys who lived through that time as 12-year-olds in different parts of Canada.
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Aug 2025 - Sports Lunatics - CFL Interviews, A Look Back
Friday, August 22, 2025
In this rebroadcast episode of The Sports Lunatics Show, Howie has compiled excerpts from three interviews with former Canadian Football League personalities, Jo-Anne Polak, the first female general manager of a North American pro sports franchise, former Edmonton Eskimo Jed Roberts and the former Ottawa Rough Rider slot receiver Pat Stoqua. Canadian football people are absolutely awesome and each of today's guests have some amazing stories of their times in the league.
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Aug 2025 - Sports Lunatics - 1976 Canada Cup and Lionel Taylor
Friday, August 15, 2025
This one is for the hockey fans. Specifically, this one might be for the older hockey fans. Shawn and Howie talk about what might be a forgotten Canadian hockey landmark - the 1996 Canada Cup. Sandwiched between the 1972 Canada-Russia Summit Series and the 1980 Miracle on Ice, the team that Canada iced in 1976 was possibly the greatest team that ever played. There were 18 Hall of Famers on that team. The guys discuss their memories from that team and that tournament and what it meant for the game of hockey as we see it today. They also talk about the career and the legacy of the great recei...
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Aug 2025 - Sports Lunatics Short - August 12 in Canadian Baseball History
Tuesday, August 12, 2025
If you ask come Canadian baseball fans of a certain age what August 12 means to them, they may or may not have a memory of 1994. If they do, that date will bring sadness. On that date, the Montreal Expos were in first place in the National League East. That was also the day that major league baseball players went out on strike. They stayed out long enough to throw away the season, and with it, the Expos' chances of maybe getting to a World Series. Rewind to 1976 and the day that Toronto's major league team got its name. Howie talks about the sadness of August 12, 1994 and the reac...
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Aug 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Sports Tragedies
Wednesday, August 6, 2025
On August 2, we observed a tragic anniversary. On that date in 1979, Thurman Munson perished in a small plane crash in Ohio. He was practicing takeoffs and landings in his personal Cessna jet when he missed the runway and died at the scene. His death hit so many people hard. He was a star on the New York Yankees and was instrumental in their World Series victories in 1977 and 1978. In light of that, Shawn and Howie looked back at other tragedies involving players and athletes who died while they were still active in their respective sports. It was not a fun episode nor was it an easy one to...
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July 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Remembering Ryne Sandberg
Wednesday, July 30, 2025
In this edition of The Sports Lunatics Show, Shawn and Howie look back at the career and the life of Chicago Cubs great, Ryne Sandberg. From how he got to the Cubs, to that magical game in 1984 that propelled the team to the National League Championship Series to the unending respect that was shown to him by teammates and opposing players throughout his career and even after it, the guys leave no stone unturned in discussing Sandberg's legacy. Shawn also looks back at the stroke that abruptly ended the pitching career of the great James Rodney Richard and the 100th anniversary of the b...
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July 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Remembering Hulk Hogan
Saturday, July 26, 2025
Terry Bollea, also known as Hulk Hogan, by the end of his life, was hated by many and loved by many. By 2025, his life and the way he was perceived and portrayed, was complicated. But as media personality and wrestling fan James Cybulski posted on Twitter, "To say Terry Bollea the person was an incredibly flawed individual would be an understatement, but the character Hulk Hogan is one of the biggest reasons wrestling is what it is today." indeed, there was a time when he was an absolute cultural phenomenon. In this edition of The Sports Lunatics Show, Shawn and Howie try to look at the lif...
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July 2025 - Remembering Jim Clancy and Bobby Jenks & The Career of Jim Abbott
Wednesday, July 16, 2025
The baseball world lost a couple of pitchers recently. A member of the original Toronto Blue Jays who pitched twelve seasons with the team and one of the last pitchers in the majors to make 40 starts in a season, Jim Clancy passed away on July 14, 2025. Clancy was an all-star in 1982 who was near the top in many team statistical categories. He was 69. Bobby Jenks was the closer on the Chicago White Sox when they won the World Series in 2005. He was an all-star in 2006 and 2007. He was second in franchise history in saves. He passed away in Sintra, Portugal on July 4. He was just 44. ESPN ha...
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July 2025 - Sports Lunatics - ChatGPT's Top Ten MLB All-Star Moments - Reggie, Charlie Hustle, The Babe and more
Thursday, July 10, 2025
As the calendar edges its way to mid-July, sports fans' minds might travel to a few different things. If you're a golf fan, you'll be paying attention to the British Open. If tennis is your thing, then it's likely that Wimbledon will be your thing. If you love baseball, then your focus will be Major League Baseball's All-Star Game. For almost a century now, the midsummer showcase has given us a myriad of moments. In this episode of The Sports Lunatics Show, Shawn and Howie went on to ChatGPT to get the bot's Top Ten All-Star Game moments. It's not a bad li...
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July 2025 - Sports Lunatics - This Date in Sports History - July 13 - The Babe, Teddy Ballgame, Jeff Gillooly and more
Wednesday, July 9, 2025
It's always interesting every once in a while to look back at what happened on a certain date and kind of analyze what went on and what went down on that date over numerous different years. Of course, mid-July offers us a few different things. There are All-Star games in baseball, of course. Wimbledon can come into play. But then there are outstanding feats that occurred as well. In this one, you'll hear about the first ever Soccer World Cup, Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, an unprecedented and singular swap that took place in the NFL, the first All-Star game played outside the United St...
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July 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Kershaw's 3000th K, Delvecchio Remembered, Bob McKenzie Exits, Jota Mourned
Thursday, July 3, 2025
We had an eventful 36 hours or so from July 1 to the morning of July 3. In that narrow window of time, Clayton Kershaw fired his 3,000th career strikeout, the great Alex Delvecchio passed away at the age of 93, hockey insider Bob McKenzie announced he was walking away from broadcasting and hockey after 48 years of work, and the soccer world mourned the loss of Portugal and Liverpool's Diogo Jota. A lot of material for Shawn and Howie to cover in a single episode.
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July 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Remembering Dave Parker and HoF Discussions, Pro and Con
Tuesday, July 1, 2025
The passing of the newly inducted Baseball Hall of Famer, Dave Parker brought sadness to a lot of people who were looking forward to seeing the baseball superstar with his plaque at the ceremony in Cooperstown later this summer. Shawn and Howie look back at his career and the careers of some other players who so far have been snubbed by their respective halls of fame. They look specifically at the case of Carey Price and this year's Hockey Hall of Fame selections. It was a spirited conversation covering a wide range of people and sports.
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June 2024 - Sports Lunatics - 2025 Hockey Hall of Fame Inductees Named
Tuesday, June 24, 2025
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.
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June 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Toews & Pain and June 22 in Sports History
Saturday, June 21, 2025
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.
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June 2025 - Sports Lunatics - ChatGPT Posted Top Ten CFL Players of All Time List
Thursday, June 12, 2025
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.
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June 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Remembering NFL Defensive Lineman Jim Marshall
Friday, June 6, 2025
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 league as the 'Purple People Eaters'. Marshall had his jersey number 70 retired by the team and his name sits in the Vikings Ring of Honor at their sta...
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June 2025 - Sports Lunatics - ChatGPT Spits Out Top Ten Stanley Cup Heroes Since 1970
Wednesday, June 4, 2025
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.
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May 2024 - Sports Lunatics - 2025 NHL Playoffs, Handshakes, Jim Irsay, George Wendt and Rick Derringer
Friday, May 30, 2025
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 handshake line at the end of it all. They even discuss how some of their own handshake lines have devolved into strong words, coming just short of exchanging blows...e...
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May 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Leafs Lose After Second Round, What Next?
Wednesday, May 21, 2025
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 forward? Shawn and Howie discuss a lot of the ramifications of this important off-season for the club. It's a contentious listen.
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May 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Pete Rose & Shoeless Joe, Musberger and Chet Lemon
Saturday, May 17, 2025
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 Tifers' centre fielder Chet Lemon.
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May 2025 - Howie Talks Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson on CJBQ-AM in Belleville
Wednesday, May 14, 2025
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.
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May 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Pop, Eddie and Bobby Orr's Iconic Goal
Saturday, May 10, 2025
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 Bobby Orr's Stanley Cup clinching goal back in 1970 is indeed the most iconic goal in hockey history.
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May 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Remembering Ed Van Impe
Wednesday, May 7, 2025
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 instrumental role in their two Stanley Cup victories in 1974 and 1975. And the moment most people remember him for took place in January of 1976 when the Flyers took on a...
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May 2025 - Sports Lunatics - May 4, 1980, 1989 & 1993
Thursday, May 1, 2025
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 the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL. It's life and death as Mogilny and his stewards, Gerry Meehan and Don Luce of the Sabres do their best to avoid the KGB and ge...
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Apr 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Rory Gets His Slam, It's NHL Playoff Time, Remembering Ray Shero
Friday, April 18, 2025
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 the Flyers to consecutive Stanley Cup wins in the mid 70s.
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April 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Remembering Ray Shero and his father Fred Shero
Friday, April 11, 2025
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 have their names on the Cup. Fred was the mastermind coach of Philadelphia's 'Broad Street Bullies' that won the Cup in 1974 and 1975. He was the f...
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April 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Alex Ovechkin Passes Wayne Gretzky with Goal #895
Thursday, April 10, 2025
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 wonderful statistical nuggets that came out of this record as well, and the boys touch on many of them.
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April 2025 - Sports Lunatics - Vladdy Jr. Signs, Greg Millen, The Clemente Debacle in Pittsburgh
Tuesday, April 8, 2025
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. Shawn and Howie deal with all of this. It's another lively episode.