Alastair Clarkson is hopeful of convincing free agent Ben McKay to remain at North Melbourne but is confident the club will prosper whatever the key defender decides.
McKay, 25, is reported to have attracted interest from rival clubs as he becomes a restricted free agent at the end of the AFL season, his eighth with the Kangaroos.
Four-time premiership coach Clarkson is no stranger to free agency, having seen superstar forward Lance Franklin leave Hawthorn to sign a nine-year contract with Sydney at the peak of his career in 2013.
The Hawks went on to win the next two premierships, in 2014 and 2015, even after Franklin jumped ship to arguably their biggest rival at the time.
If McKay takes up a free agency offer then North could be in for some significant draft compensation.
"We want him to stay," Clarkson said of McKay at Arden St on Thursday.
"But I've been involved in this caper for a long, long period of time and there's probably no bigger player in the game than 'Buddy' Franklin.
"He was one of the first of the first free agent players to leave. And we weren't happy with it at the time because we obviously wanted him to stay at Hawthorn.
"But the club was still able to prosper once he left. He was also able to prosper as a player (at Sydney), and so everyone can still win from these situations.
"So if Ben decides to stay … we feel like he's just ready to blossom into a really, really good key defender. He's already a good key defender, but his best seven or eight years should be in front of him now.
"But if he was to leave, then that's his choice. That's the whole situation with free agency, and you've got to be prepared for both sides."
Clarkson said there had been "ongoing dialogue" with McKay, and it was unlikely the big defender had already made up his mind.
"The culture of our game is you don't usually make your decision until the season's finished," Clarkson said.
"That's what we'd expect and we'll probably find out in two or three weeks' time."
Veteran Liam Shiels is another whose future will be decided in the off-season, and Clarkson said the club's need to keep a blend of youth and experience would be considered when making decisions about the playing list.
Kangaroos legend Jack Ziebell plays his final game on Saturday against Richmond at the MCG, following last week's farewell to club champ Ben Cunnington and the retirement of 161-gamer Aaron Hall.
"We've got to be mindful of the balance of our list and the amount of experienced guys that go off the list," Clarkson said.
"It's one thing to go really, really skinny in terms of experience, and another where you want to actually keep some of that experience around, too.
"So with the retirements of 'Ziebs' (Jack Ziebell) and 'Hally' (Aaron Hall) and also 'Cunners' (Ben Cunnington), that might play into our thinking that Shiels might play for another year, but we'll work that out in the fullness of time.
"It's the same with 'Goldy' (Todd Goldstein), too."
