Cynthia Talbot enjoys having 19-year-old Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon living at her home in Denver’s Cherry Creek neighborhood. She sees it as good practice.

Cynthia and her husband, Avs veteran forward Max Talbot, are first-time parents to Jaxson, who is 9 months old.

“It’s a warm-up for when the baby gets that age,” Cynthia said of having the teenager MacKinnon living in the basement.

MacKinnon lived with goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere and his family last season, beginning when he was 17. The now-retired Giguere has three young sons, and MacKinnon would spend much of his time playing video games with the boys. He’s now similarly entertained playing with Jaxson.

“He’s a beauty,” MacKinnon said. “He’s the best.”

Cynthia is thankful for the relationship between the boys. “It’s very good chemistry,” she said.

Billet families have long been a staple of elite-level youth hockey, particularly to players ages 16 to 20 living with host families. And teenage NHL players often have roomed with veteran teammates. Previously with the Avs, Matt Duchene lived with Adam Foote, and Ryan O’Reilly with Darcy Tucker.

During the 1999-2000 season, Avs forward Alex Tanguay lived with goalie Patrick Roy, who is now his coach.

Max Talbot feels like he’s giving back. He lived with a billet family for three years while playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and he made a promise to Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby that he would look after MacKinnon.

Crosby and MacKinnon are both from Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia. Crosby, 27, and Talbot, 30, were Stanley Cup-winning linemates with the Penguins in 2009.

“I felt like I knew Nate before I met him because of Sid, and talking to Sid,” said Talbot, who was traded to Colorado from Philadelphia early last season. “And I think Nate felt the same way because he cheered on the Penguins for so long. You know, the Penguins are his team. When we won the Cup and brought the Cup to Nova Scotia, I went with Sid, and Nate was age 13 on the side of the road, waving at us. That’s pretty crazy to think about it.

“And when I was younger I always respected guys who took the young guys in, guys like Mario Lemieux taking in Sid (in Pittsburgh), Danny Briere with young Claude Giroux (in Philadelphia). Now, with a number of years under my belt, I’m proud to be doing it.”

Before moving in with Giguere more than a year ago, MacKinnon never had a billet family because he played in the QMJHL for Halifax, a 10-minute drive from Cole Harbour. Virtually everyone else on the Halifax Mooseheads lived with a billet family.

As a freshman and sophomore in high school, MacKinnon lived in a dormitory while playing prep hockey for Shattuck St. Mary’s in Faribault, Minn.

The Talbots say MacKinnon acts like a seasoned pro when it comes to manners and common-sense unspoken rules.

“No rules at Jiggy’s. Same with Max. Pretty easygoing,” MacKinnon said. “Just have to be respectful. I know how to act. I’m respectful to their house, their children, clean up for myself. I’m still a teenager, so I make some mistakes around the house, but overall things have been going pretty well.”

Cynthia, who competed in figure skating for Canada in the 2010 Winter Olympics, concurs. “He’s a very easygoing kid, and he’s been very good to have,” she said.

MacKinnon, the reigning Calder Trophy winner as NHL rookie of the year, drives an SUV and typically hangs out in the Cherry Creek shopping and entertainment district with Avs defenseman Tyson Barrie, 23, who has a place in the area. Barrie often has dinner at the Talbots, and word is Cynthia makes mean cuisine.

“She’s unbelievable. Better than any restaurant I’ve been to,” MacKinnon said. “I’m so lucky I have her to cook for us.”

The Avs’ team meals on the road, at the Pepsi Center and their practice arena make MacKinnon miss the home-cooked meals. MacKinnon isn’t around Cynthia and Jaxson as much as he would like.

“Our life, our routine — there’s not much time at home,” Talbot said. “You get breakfast at the rink, eat lunch at the rink. In the afternoon, you go shopping or whatever, if we’re not traveling. At night, he has dinner with us and then he’s going to go downstairs and play Xbox or Skype with someone back home.”

MacKinnon has a large, finished basement as his playground, a place Talbot doesn’t frequent often unless he feels like challenging his tenant to a game.

“Lots of video games — hates to lose at video games. I learned that the first day he was home,” Talbot said. “Very competitive.”

MacKinnon’s parents visit their son about once a month in Denver and stay at a nearby hotel. They also attend various Avalanche games on the road. So MacKinnon is surrounded by a tightly knit conglomerate of friends and family.

“It’s a cool area with Max, right next to a mall and all the restaurants and stuff like that. And Tyson is close,” MacKinnon said. “It’s good. I really like it.

“Obviously, (the Talbots) are a little younger and have a new baby. Jiggy had three kids. It’s different, but I’m definitely enjoying it, having a lot of fun. It’s similar because I’m at someone else’s home and I must respect everything about the situation.”

Roomies

Nathan MacKinnon is the fourth Avalanche player to live with a teammate as a teenager:

1999-2000: Alex Tanguay, 19, with Patrick Roy, 34

2009-10: Matt Duchene, 18, with Adam Foote, 38

2009-10: Ryan O’Reilly, 18, with Darcy Tucker, 34

2013-14: Nathan MacKinnon, 18, with Jean-Sebastien Giguere, 36

2014-15: MacKinnon, 19, with Max Talbot, 30

Another notable NHL living arrangement: Sidney Crosby, 18, with Mario Lemieux, 39, in Pittsburgh in 2005-06