WASHINGTON — Alex Ovechkin heard Capitals fans chanting, “We want 50!” after scoring his 49th goal of the season.

“Next game,” Ovechkin said.

The next game could bring milestones for Ovechkin and Washington, which beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 Tuesday night to move to the verge of clinching a playoff berth. The defending Stanley Cup champions are a victory away from their 11th playoff appearance in the last 12 seasons.

“That’s why we play 82 games, to clinch the playoffs,” Ovechkin said after adding to his NHL-leading goal total. “Both teams understand we need the points. I don’t know how the different teams played, I didn’t look at that, but that was important.”

The Capitals beating the Hurricanes in regulation and results elsewhere made it a great night for Washington and a bad one for Carolina. The Columbus Blue Jackets’ defeat of the New York Islanders allowed the Capitals to extend their lead atop the Metropolitan Division to three points, and that, coupled with the Montreal Canadiens’ victory over the Florida Panthers, allowed those teams to gain ground on the Hurricanes.

“You can’t look for help,” Hurricanes captain Justin Williams said. “That’s not the way you do it. You take care of your own business and if someone loses, great. But you go into everything assuming you need to win because every other team is going to win, too.”

Looking for their fourth consecutive division title, the Capitals again came away with two points when there was a chance they’d fall into second place.

“We don’t care too much about the standings,” said goaltender Braden Holtby, who made 27 saves. “We’re focused on trying to win a game, so we’re not letting anything get in our head.”