BOSTON — From players to coaches to management, the San Jose Sharks have a large group of Massachusetts natives within the organization.

Will Smith, Collin Graf, Adam Gaudette, Ryan Warsofsky, Mike Grier, and, to a degree, Macklin Celebrini are all tied to Boston or Massachusetts.

All but Grier spoke to reporters in Boston ahead of Thursday’s matchup with the Boston Bruins. Smith went to see friends, while Gaudette, Graf, and Warsofsky went to see family. Celebrini attended Boston University’s hockey game on Wednesday with Tyler Toffoli. Celebrini’s older brother, Aiden, currently plays for BU.

“I love being back home. Getting to play here is always a dream come true,” Smith said.

“It’s great coming home. Got off that plane last night, and [there’s] nothing like that, Boston air that’s for sure,” Warsofsky said.

“It’s nice being in an area you feel comfortable. I’ll get to go home today, so that’ll be nice,” Graf said. “It’s just fun playing and playing here.”

“It’s just exciting to be here. Obviously, it’s home, and I spent three years playing college hockey in the city,” Gaudette said. “A lot of good memories, and just one of my favorite cities for sure. It’s always nice to come back see some family and play at the garden.”

By garden, Gaudette means TD Garden. For Gaudette, Smith, and Celebrini, the San Jose Sharks trio played in the famous Beanpot tournament. A yearly tradition on the first two Mondays of February, Northeastern, Harvard, Boston College, and Boston University play in a mini-tournament.

“Definitely, the Beampot for sure,” Gaudette said. “I was walking through campus yesterday and thinking about how much simpler life was back then. Those days go by quick.”

For Smith, the first time he played with the Sharks at TD Garden is something he’ll always remember.

“Got to play there with BC a bunch, and then last year with the Sharks. I always love playing there, it’s one of my favorite buildings,” Smith said.

Smith scored in his only game with the Sharks at TD Garden last season, with many friends and family in attendance.

Smith told reporters he’s expecting a lot of people to attend Thursday’s game, and it sounds like he’s paying the bill, too.

“I don’t even know the number, to be honest, a lot,” Smith smiled.

“You paying to play,” I asked Smith.

“For a week, probably, really,” Smith laughed.

San Jose Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky is also expecting a big crowd, but his dad is covering more of the ticket cost.

“Yeah, there’s a big group. It should be about 50. I bought a little bit, but gave it up to my dad,” Warsofsky said.

For the Sharks, most of their memories revolve around hockey, but there are some stories they could tell that aren’t about the sport.

For Graf, his Quinnipiac team had a tradition of going to get ice cream every Wednesday.

“We’d have this tradition on Wednesdays, we’d go to this ice cream place called Wentworth. I mean, almost the whole team every Wednesday would go get ice cream,” Graf said.

When asked what his flavor of choice was, Graf didn’t hesitate: cookie dough. Good choice, too.

“There are so many. We had a super special class at BC. There were 11 of us in our freshman year, and we just got so tight over the years,” Smith said. “We still all keep in touch pretty much every week. Always talk to them on the phone and see them over the summer, and whenever I’m back home.”

Warsofsky’s memory is a little different. The Sharks’ head coach never made it to the NHL as a player, but he’s been around it his whole life. Mike Sullivan would bring Warsofsky to Bruins morning skates while he was the head coach. Seeing top players like Patrice Bergeron in his first season has stuck with him to this day.

“Coming with my dad to a game, way back in the late 90s, when I was 12 years old. Then, when Sully was coaching here, I was around a little bit more—got to come to some morning skates. I remember the first time I came to a morning skate, it was Patrice Bergeron’s first year,” Warsofsky said.

“Being around those guys, and just being in the dressing room and talking to Sully, that was part of my biggest memory. That was probably the best day of my life, looking back. Now I see my son being around our locker room, and he thinks it’s just part of his life. He doesn’t really know how special he has it, but yeah, that was probably a big day for me.”

The San Jose Sharks Massachusetts crew will have a crowd to please when the puck drops at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday.