Mathieu Olivier scored two goals and Dante Fabbro scored once in the third period for the Blue Jackets (28-20-7), who are 9-1-0 since Rick Bowness took over as coach on Jan. 12.
Merzlikins earned his first shutout of the season and first since a 2-0 win against the New York Islanders on Oct. 30, 2024. It was his second career shutout against the Devils.
Jacob Markstrom made 22 saves for the Devils (28-26-2), who have lost four of their past five games.
Merzlikins made 17 saves through two periods, denying Timo Meier on a snap shot off a spin-o-rama from the slot at 1:20 of the second period. Columbus was 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.
Fabbro gave Columbus a 1-0 lead at 5:24 of the third period on a snap shot through a screen from the top of the right face-off circle. Fabbro, a defenseman, was inserted into the lineup after missing his past six games with a lower-body injury.
Olivier pushed it to 2-0 when he scored on a backhand off a breakaway at 12:05.
Olivier was then credited with his second goal to make it 3-0 after being slashed by Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton while attempting to shoot into an empty net at 16:00.
The Blue Jackets appeared to take a 1-0 lead 5:10 into the first period when Danton Heinen scored on a shot from the right face-off circle but the Devils successfully challenged the play for goalie interference on Miles Wood in the crease.
Columbus, which is 10-1-0 in its past 11 games, concluded a three-game road trip and will play against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday.
