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Giguere out with back spasms, Avs recall Aittokallio

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The Colorado Avalanche will be without veteran netminder Jean-Sebastien Giguere (back spasms) for the next while and have recalled Sami Aittokallio from AHL Lake Erie to take Giguere’s place on the active roster.

Aittokallio, 21, made his NHL debut late last season against Los Angeles, faring pretty well -- 23 saves on 25 shots -- before cramping in both legs forced him from the game.

Giguere, 36, is 7-4-0 this season with a 2.65 GAA and .911 save percentage. He was rock solid to start the year — splitting second star of the week honors with Semyon Varlamov in October — but has struggled of late. He’s mired in a four-game losing streak and has given up 11 goals over his last two outings, which included a brutal 7-2 loss in Chicago last Friday in which he was hooked after the second period.

Giguere’s spotty play drew the ire of head coach Patrick Roy, who called out the veteran netminder for the string of poor efforts. To his credit, Giguere agreed with Roy’s critique, saying “at the end of the day, I have not been playing my best.”