North Melbourne looks set for a forward line reshuffle this weekend against Gold Coast, with a mixture of player unavailability and Darwin weather conditions potentially forcing coach David Noble's hand.

Cam Zurhaar is set to come out of the side after discovering a hot spot in his foot, while a knee operation will see in-form key forward Charlie Comben sidelined for up to six weeks.

Ruck/forward Callum Coleman-Jones is battling a minor quad issue and is fighting to prove his fitness and Jacob Edwards is in the midst of a conditioning block of training.

While the Kangaroos may be forced to go small, David Noble says that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

"With the game being a bit slippery it might allow us to go a bit smaller … it's unlikely for us to bring another tall in so we'll have to re-shape the forward end," Noble said.

"'CJ' (Coleman-Jones) is still in a bit of rehab for a sore quad last week … we saw a fair bit of [Stephenson's] run from back to forward through the midfield, so he's certainly put himself back in contention.

"It opens up an opportunity … it's good conditions (wet) for us to train in today because the game will be a bit slippery. We're looking forward to getting to Darwin."

There could be two new Shinboners come the culmination of Wednesday night's NAB AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft. Miller Bergman's shoulder injury and Tom Lynch's retirement will see the Kangaroos take two selections into the recruitment process.

North holds selections two and 17 on the night.

2021's mid-season draft saw the club select Edwards with the view of the 19-year-old ruck/forward of being a long-term prospect. Noble says the club is open to taking all types of players should they fit the list's needs.

"We're open for a mature-ager that might be able to come in with some good form in the VFL and create opportunity … we'll also consider a 19-year-old who's escalated and missed out on last year's draft," he said.

"Whether it's back, mids, forwards, whether it's a running wing, whether it's a defender, a leading small forward, we'll consider all of those options.

"It ends up boiling down to, probably, talent more-so than need. For us that means we're open to all areas so that helps us make a decision later."

Second-year forward Phoenix Spicer is set to make his long-awaited return to play this weekend recovering from a long-term hamstring injury.S picer made his AFL debut in Round 23 last year against Adelaide, however injury has kept him sidelined since then.

Noble says the club will be mindful of the young forward's loading as he progresses his return.

"Phoenix will come back, his program is he'll play three quarters in the VFL this week and a full game the following week. That'll bring his last bit of his loading back up to AFL standard," he said.

"He's done a fantastic job, he's had a couple of big setbacks but his personality has been great and we're looking forward to him creating some pressure underneath."