Well there is always this:
1983 to 1988: The Pittsburgh Penguins/Mario Lemieux sweepstakes The team had the league's worst record in both the
1983 and
1984 seasons, and with the team suffering financial problems, it again looked as though the Penguins would fold.
Mario Lemieux, one of the most highly touted NHL draft picks in history, was due to be drafted in the
1984 NHL Entry Draft. Heading towards the end of the season ahead of the
New Jersey Devils, who were placed last, the Penguins made a number of questionable moves that appeared to weaken the team in the short-term. The Penguins posted three six-game winless streaks in the last 21 games of the season (out of which they won only three) and earned the right to draft Lemieux amidst protests from Devils president Bob Butera.
[4] Pittsburgh coach
Lou Angotti later admitted that a conscious decision was made to finish the season as the team with the worst record, stating in an interview with the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that a mid-season lunch prompted the plan, in light of the fact that there was a high chance of the franchise folding if Lemieux was not drafted.
[5] In particular, Angotti gave the example of a game the Penguins were winning 3–1, at which point general manager
Eddie Johnston asked the coach "what are you doing?" in the first intermission of the game that was eventually lost 6–3.
Looks like a pretty good example to prove you wrong, hell the coach admitted it later....but still hate to see the Skins lose on purpose.