By 1983, Wayne Gretzky was already being called the greatest player who ever lived. He had broken Phil Esposito's single-season scoring record in 1981–82 with 212 points. He was 22 years old and seemingly unstoppable. The Edmonton Oilers reached the 1983 Stanley Cup Final for the first time, and many in hockey expected the next dynasty had arrived.
Billy Smith had other ideas.
The Islanders' veteran goaltender was 32 years old and playing in his fourth consecutive Cup Final. He was not the most technically elegant goalie in the league — he had a reputation for using his stick as a weapon on any forward who dared camp in his crease — but he was supremely competitive, deeply experienced, and utterly unintimidated by reputations.
In the 1983 Final, Smith held Gretzky scoreless across all four games. Gretzky, who had scored 71 goals and 196 points during the regular season, managed zero goals against Smith. He did collect four assists, but his failure to score haunted him. "I'd been to the Finals," Gretzky said years later, "and I'd lost. I had to figure out what it took to win." The lesson the Oilers learned from the Islanders in 1983 fueled their own dynasty that began the very next year.
Smith won the Conn Smythe Trophy with a 2.68 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage in 20 playoff games. He was the last line of defense for a team that swept the Oilers 4–0, completing the Islanders' fourth consecutive championship.
"Billy was the toughest SOB I ever played with or against," said one teammate. "You did not want to go into his crease. And when the game was on the line, you wanted him in that net." Fort Neverlose had its guardian, and in 1983, he was at his absolute best.