Dean Talafous is trying to emulate former Minnesota Wild center Wes Walz. Not on the ice, but behind the bench.

Talafous is in his first season as East Ridge’s head coach and replaced Walz, who took over the Raptors' boys hockey program after guiding the girls' team for two successful seasons. 

An assistant under Walz last year, Talafous was plans to maintain many of his predecessor's philosophies as the Raptors attempt to continuing ascending.

“I’m trying to put a lot of the discipline, the hustle, the hard work, the short shifts, the unselfishness that he’s kind of instilled in these girls and they believe in it,” Talafous said. 

The continuity has the Raptors off to a good start as they opened the season with a 2-0 victory over Tartan on Wednesday.

Junior forward Katherine Scheibner scored the game-winning goal late in the second period. Senior forward Jessie Andersen and sophomore defender Maria Wallace assisted on the goal.

Freshman forward Grace Heiting scored in the third period with senior forward Braeden Yeo earning the assist.

The Raptors had four regular-season victories the year before Walz took over the program, and finished with 10 wins in his first season. East Ridge won 15 games and reached the Class 2A, Section 3 semifinals in Walz’s final season.

Talafous, who is also a former professional hockey player, hopes to continue the program’s success by embracing Walz’ coaching mentality. 

“To get a group of girls that understand that discipline and that team-first attitude, you can sometimes work 10 years and never get that in a program,” Talafous said. “Wes did it, so I’m just reminding the girls everyday this is what Raptor hockey is.” 

Scheibner, who has been on the varsity since her freshman year and led the team with 21 points (12 goals, 9 assists) as a sophomore, said Walz helped East Ridge make monumental improvements.  

“He put a lot of great input into the program,” she said. “We talk about trying to carry over what he established and keeping the level of play up with the program since he left.”

The only difference between Talafous and Walz is their anxiety levels, Scheibner said. 

“Coach Dean is a little bit more relaxed when he coaches, but they both bring a lot of passion to the game,” Scheibner said.    

Talafous brings a lot of playing and coaching experience to the Raptors' program.

As a member of the Wisconsin Badgers, Talafous finished his collegiate career with 133 points in 111 games. He led the team in game-winning goals and assists during the 1972-73 and 1973-74 seasons. Talafous was also named the 1973 NCAA Frozen Four MVP for scoring game-winning goals against Cornell in the semifinals and Denver in the finals, according to a South Washington County School's press release.

Talafous went on to play eight seasons with several teams in the National Hockey League, including with the Minnesota North Stars (1975-78) and the New York Rangers (1978-82). He ended his professional career with 108 goals and 269 points in 518 games.

Talafous was a member of the United States team which competed in 1973 and 1974 at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship. He also played for Team USA at the 1976 and 1981 Canada Cup.

Talafous served as an assistant coach at the University of Minnesota from 1982 to 1988. He was head coach at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls (1989-96) and guided the team to the NCAA Division III championship in 1994. He then coached the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association from 1996 to 2001.

Scheibner believes the Raptors can maintain the program’s success despite the coaching change and graduating eight seniors, including Walz’ daughter Jaedyn. 

“I think we can go pretty far,” Scheibner said. “We have a lot of good, hard-working players, and I’m pretty excited for the season.”  

Junior forward Katie Scheibner scored the game-winning goal late in the second period, leading East Ridge to a 2-0 triumph over Tartan on Wednesday at the Bielenberg Sports Center in Woodbury. 

The first period ended in a scoreless tie despite the Raptors outshooting the Titans 10-2.

Scheibner ended the drought when she tipped in a shot from the blue line with 1:06 left to play before the second intermission. Senior forward Jessie Andersen and sophomore defender Maria Wallace assisted on the goal. 

East Ridge freshman forward Grace Heiting scored for the Raptors’ with 14:24 remaining in the third period with senior forward Braeden Yeo earning the assist. 

East Ridge (1-0) plays at Apple Valley on Nov. 15, while Tartan (1-1) travels to Waseca for a game on Nov. 14.

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