Ovechkin gave Washington a 2-1 lead at 4:31 of the third period with his 656th NHL goal, tying Brendan Shanahan for 13th place. It was his first goal in five games.
"I had lots of chances to score tonight, but finally I got one because I think the last couple games I didn't use my chances," said Ovechkin, who is on the verge of becoming the third NHL player with at least eight 50-goal seasons. "It was an important goal and I'm happy with the win."
WATCH: [All Hurricanes vs. Capitals highlights]
The Capitals (45-24-8), 11-3-1 in their past 15 games, moved three points ahead of the New York Islanders and the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Metropolitan. New York lost 4-0 at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday.
Dougie Hamilton scored for the Hurricanes (42-27-7), who trail the Islanders and Penguins by four points for second place in the Metropolitan and hold the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference, one point ahead of the Montreal Canadiens. Montreal defeated the Florida Panthers 6-1 at home on Tuesday.
"They were good. We were not," Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "Put those two together and we really had no chance in that game. That's what it felt like the whole way. We never got to our game."
Evgeny Kuznetsov had three assists, and Braden Holtby made 27 saves for Washington, which visits Carolina on Thursday to complete the home-and-home.
"He was looking good," Holtby said of Kuznetsov. "He's playing really well, and we need him to play well in order to have success."
T.J. Oshie gave the Capitals a 1-0 lead at 16:29 of the first period when he scored from low in the left circle off a pass through the crease by Kuznetsov.
