RALEIGH, N.C. — Alex Ovechkin was in the house Wednesday and brought Gary Bettman with him.

Ovechkin, the Washington Capitals’ irrepressible offensive star, continued to chase the career goal-scoring record of NHL legend Wayne Gretzky as the Caps faced the Carolina Hurricanes at the Lenovo Center.

Bettman was there to see it. The NHL commissioner is following Ovechkin as the regular season winds down and Ovechkin’s pursuit of the record heats up.

What the commissioner saw was Ovechkin pick up goal No. 892, three shy of setting the record, and the Hurricanes pick up a 5-1 victory in the Metropolitan Division matchup to clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs for a seventh straight season.

Forward Jackson Blake had a pair of goals — a first for the rookie — for the Canes, who took a 3-0 lead in the first period, limited the Caps’ opportunities and got a calm, efficient game in net from goalie Frederik Andersen, who won his seventh straight.

The game took an ugly turn in the third period, when there seemingly was a skirmish or fight every other minute. Bettman saw all that, too.

All eyes were on Ovechkin, who made it three straight games with a goal late in the second period. The Caps had a two-man advantage on the power play, and Ovechkin unloaded a heavy one-timer from the left circle – his so-called “office” – to move another step closer to Gretzky’s mark of 894.

It was his signature shot. It also was his 39th goal of the season, his 52nd career goal in 92 games against the Hurricanes and his 10th career goal against Andersen.

“It’s simply incredible and it captures the imagination,” Bettman said during an in-game interview on the Canes’ FanDuel telecast. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing. And what a great person Wayne is, the consummate ambassador. He’s part of what makes this chase so special.”

Ovechkin, who was first drafted by the Capitals in the Lenovo Center in 2004, is 39. There is gray in his hair, in his beard. He may have put on a few extra pounds.

But put him on the ice and the left winger is all power, still durable. The big shot is ageless, still lethal. Consider that 416 of his goals have come since his 30th birthday — Gordie Howe held the career record with 415.

Ovechkin didn’t have the puck much in the first 20 minutes. Neither did the Caps, who had five shots on goal — one by Ovechkin — in the opening period as the Canes stayed on the attack and in the Caps’ zone.

Defenseman Sean Walker scored the first goal of the game, off a turnover from Caps defenseman Jakob Chychrun. Walker converted the bad pass into his fifth goal of the season.

The Canes’ power play took it from there. Blake gathered in a rebound and ripped a shot from the slot. Then, Seth Jarvis blasted a one-timer from the left circle for the 3-0 lead and his 30th goal of the season.

The lead could have been larger in the first. Jarvis and Sebastian Aho had a good shorthanded chance, as did Mark Jankowski later in the period, but goalie Logan Thompson was able to make the stops.

The Caps made a change in net after the first, inserting goalie Charlie Lindgren for Thompson, who suffered an upper-body injury — Thompson took a heavy shot from Walker off the helmet at one point in the period.

The Canes’ Logan Stankoven made it a 4-0 game after a blistering shot off the rush before the 5-on-3 power-play strike by Ovechkin with 35 seconds left in the second period.

Blake’s second goal of the game came on the power play, the winger popping in a short shot.

Andersen had a one-on-one moment with Ovechkin early in the second, but made a solid save in tight as Canes fans roared. Later in the period, he stopped an Ovechkin shot from the slot, then a rebound chance at the post by Trevor van Riemsdyk.

Ovechkin, who was first drafted by Washington in the Lenovo Center in 2004, is 39. There is gray in his hair, in his beard. He may have put on a few extra pounds.

But put him on the ice and the left winger is all power, still durable. The big shot is ageless, still lethal. Consider that 416 of his goals have come since his 30th birthday — Gordie Howe held the career record with 415.

Much of the pregame talk centered on Ovechkin and the record, on his longevity and his career with his Caps.

“I mean, unbelievable player,” Aho said after the morning skate. “Best goal scorer of all time. Obviously, going to break that record at some time here.

“That stuff is kind of unbelievable. Everyone thought (the record) was untouchable, what Gretzky had. But he’s getting there and it’s impressive.”

Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour played against Ovechkin early in Ovechkin’s career and now has coached against him.

Asked his preference, Brind’Amour quickly replied, “Neither.”

“It’s been pretty interesting to see because to watch him play for this long, at this high a level, I don’t think anyone anticipated that,” he said. “To be able to continue to produce at the way he does it is pretty remarkable.”

Brind’Amour said Gretzky’s total production should not be overlooked, as well, and that Ovechkin’s chase of the goal-scoring record would bring further scrutiny of Gretzky’s career numbers.

Gretzky, who retired in 1999, had the 894 goals — something seemingly akin to Babe Ruth’s vintage baseball record of 714 homers — but also is the NHL career leader in assists (1,963) and points (2,857).

By comparison, former NHL star Jaromir Jagr is second in career points with 1,921.

“For me, I think it’s great even for Wayne,” Brind’Amour said. “I think it just shows how good a player he was. We’re talking about this goal thing and he was a great goal scorer, but he was a better playmaker.

“No one is even close to that and that to me, the overall impact Gretzky had, is getting maybe relived for people who never watched him play. So it’s all good.”

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