Still, what everyone knew was that the victory over Atlanta, which entered the game in second place, all but locked up first place in the Eastern Conference for Torrent’s team. That it was delivered by Mitrita, in a burst of opportunistic scoring efficiency, seemed fitting.

A 24-year-old wing, Mitrita has been neither an everyday starter nor New York City’s scoring leader this season. (Entering Wednesday, in fact, he was third on the team in goals.) What he has provided instead, in a league filled with bigger stars, has been diligent work and a knack for finding open space — or creating it.

His first two goals on Wednesday were nearly identical, slicing runs from the left in which he cut inside for right-footed shots that beat Atlanta goalkeeper Brad Guzan. His third was a mix of good fortune and good timing, a run followed through to the back post that allowed him to pounce on a Guzan rebound and finish into an empty net for a 3-0 lead in the 34th minute.

Only a missed penalty kick by midfielder Maxi Moralez marred a dominant first half for New York City, and only a penalty surrendered by Maxime Chanot after halftime spoiled the shutout, but afterward few on the New York City side were pointing out flaws. They knew that another date with Atlanta — which played without the injured striker Josef Martínez on Wednesday — could be looming in the postseason.

“The important thing for us is to play in the playoffs,” Torrent said. “But it’s very important for us to win these kind of games because maybe you have to play again in the playoffs against this team.”