As an undrafted free agent, Dries was signed to a one-year American Hockey League (AHL) contract with the Texas Stars on May 10, 2017. After attending the Dallas Stars 2017 NHL training camp, Dries began his rookie professional season with Texas in 2017–18. He made a quick transition to the AHL, showing a scoring touch along with a tenacity in traffic to score 19 goals and 30 points in 70 regular season games. Dries led all AHL rookies in the Calder Cup playoffs, scoring 10 goals in 22 post-season games as the Stars fell to the Toronto Marlies in the finals.
