LOS ANGELES — Nathan MacKinnon could very well win his second Hart Trophy and it would be hard to argue against him. With apologies to the late legendary rapper, “Nate Dogg” is out to win his first Rocket Richard, in a battle to claim his first NHL scoring title and has willed the Colorado Avalanche to a ridiculous 31-4-7 record.

Connor McDavid could capture his fourth Hart and it would be hard to argue against him either. “McJesus” vaulted back into contention with one of his patented scoring binges and it would be no shock if he wins his sixth Art Ross Trophy as he battles MacKinnon for the points lead. He’s pulling along the otherwise vulnerable Edmonton Oilers.

But if you go by the book, that the Hart should be awarded “to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team,” there is no better case right now than Macklin Celebrini.

The San Jose Sharks left Crypto.com Arena in the first wild-card position in the Western Conference after a 4-3 overtime victory Wednesday night over the Los Angeles Kings, a comeback powered by Celebrini as his team flew into Southern California to play a night after defeating the Columbus Blue Jackets at home.

The Sharks hold a playoff spot and have visions of keeping it as they tackle a meaningful stretch run virtually no one anticipated. This was supposed to happen maybe a year from now, more likely two. But a 19-year-old who has gone from phenom to superstar to standing with McDavid or MacKinnon in the “best player in the world” line in short order is redefining what’s possible for a team that was bottom-feeding (or well-schemed tanking?) and dreaming of a way to get him to San Jose.

This May, it will be two years since the Sharks won the NHL draft lottery. Macklin Mania is spreading. And after a three-point night where he scored the tying goal late in regulation and set up the winner in overtime, Celebrini is smack dab in the middle of his first playoff race. Every night matters, and he’s basking in it.

“It’s great,” Celebrini said. “It’s great. This is what we want. This is the position we want to be in. Especially with where things were, I think we’re doing a great job kind of handling all of it. I think we have the group to do it. Obviously, there’s a whole season, half season left. There’s a lot of work to do.

“But you have a feeling in our group. We’re confident in those situations that when we’re down 3-2 or tied 2-2, going in late against a really, really good team and playoff team. It’s a different kind of swagger and feeling in our group.”

The Kings grabbed a 3-2 lead on Alex Laferriere’s tipped goal with 2:10 left in regulation. And as the clock wound down, the situation obviously called for San Jose to pull goalie Yaroslav Askarov for a sixth attacker to try and generate a tying goal.

All the Sharks needed was Celebrini. He intercepted a clearing attempt by Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson and with one scintillating move to his right that spun around Warren Foegele and then another to his left, got inside of the Los Angeles forward and snapped a shot through Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper with 1:06 left.

“I was just so focused on getting open for him and he just danced that guy,” Sharks winger William Eklund said. “Enough can’t be said about this guy.”

Center Adam Gaudette added, “Anytime he gets the puck, you’re like, something’s going to happen.”

That’s what it has become with Celebrini. The crowd, mostly in Kings colors but dotted with teal-clad supporters, knows what it is seeing. In the first period, Celebrini got the puck with some speed into open space. Accompanying that rush up ice was a surging undercurrent of noise. It’s like McDavid and MacKinnon when they take off. What is he going to do?

He scored an empty-net goal to finish the Blue Jackets off and extend his point streak Tuesday, and got that task out of the way in the second period Wednesday when he assisted on Tyler Toffoli’s easy power-play finish. Celebrini now has points in 12 straight games. His competitiveness is universally respected; his skill is undeniable. But it is his way of meeting the big moment that is setting him apart from the league’s other top players. He doesn’t shirk away from it. He devours the moment as if it were a simple chuck steak or the finest wagyu.

The Kings on Wednesday became Celebrini’s latest meal. A regulation loss turned into a point gained because of his heroics. And then for overtime dessert, he jumped on Adrian Kempe’s failed connection with Laferriere and steamed ahead with Eklund for a two-on-one fast break. The pass from Celebrini was on a platter for Eklund, who then hammered the puck past Kuemper.

“It worked out perfectly,” Celebrini said, almost sheepishly.

Going back to the tying goal, I asked him if he feels a sense of calm when he’s in a critical situation. Celebrini, who’ll become their captain as soon as next season, shifted into team mode even as he put the Sharks on his shoulders in that 6-on-5 moment.

“We have a great group,” he said. “I trust all the guys. We work on it sometimes, but it’s all a feel thing. We had plenty of chances throughout the game to kind of get one of those, but obviously, it never worked out. I think there’s a lot more confidence in our group when we got the extra attacker.”

With Tuesday’s win over Columbus, their 21st on the season, the Sharks surpassed last season’s victory total. Now they’re building on that. Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky called the victory Wednesday “pretty close” to their biggest to date, considering they got it over their southern rival, a fellow playoff contender that was rested and coming off impressive back-to-back wins over Minnesota.

“He just keeps impressing us and impressing us and getting better and better,” Warsofsky said of Celebrini. “He took over that game there and makes a hell of a play on the 6-on-5. He’s definitely turning into a superstar right before our eyes.”

No, coach, he’s not turning into one. He is one. The five-point night at Madison Square Garden that included setting up Will Smith for the overtime winner. Beating the Wild two games later with his own OT score. Scoring all three of San Jose’s goals to beat Utah.

“No moment is too big for him,” Warsofsky said. “And I know it’s early in his career, but the competitiveness that this kid has, you would drop him in Vancouver in a rink with no roof against the Anaheim Ducks and he’d be ready to play. That’s what type of competitor he is. That’s what makes him special.”

With his 11th three-point game this season, Celebrini is up to 24 goals and 67 points. He’s third in the scoring race but may not catch either McDavid or MacKinnon, given how prolific both can be. But that helps his argument for the Hart. McDavid has Leon Draisaitl, arguably a top-five player in his own right, as a high-powered teammate. MacKinnon has the world’s best defenseman in Cale Makar on a deep Avalanche squad. Perhaps it’s unfair for those two to be penalized for their surrounding cast, but Celebrini doesn’t have a fellow superstar to play off.

Celebrini has factored in 50 percent of San Jose’s goals. Fifty! No teenager in NHL history has done that. He has twice as many points as the Sharks’ next highest player (Alexander Wennberg has 30). He hasn’t had Smith, who has the third most points on the team, since Dec. 13, when the talented Sharks scorer took an injurious hit from Parker Wotherspoon.

Warsofsky says Celebrini drags his team into the fight, but he’s doing much more than that. This 19-year-old is carrying a team that wasn’t supposed to sniff the playoffs. That’s an MVP at work.

“He’s special, man,” Gaudette said. “He’s right up there with Sidney Crosby. I think he’s, if not the best, one of the best players in the world right now. He’s so young, he’s got so much room to grow, that it’s going to be real scary once he gets a little older and he fills out a little more.

“But he’s just unbelievable. It’s so much fun to watch. What I like about it the most is he’s such a humble kid. He is such a fun kid to be around and always a smile on his face. He’s always in a good mood. It’s really fun to watch and I’m just happy to be a part of it.”

As is the rest of the hockey world.