Forward Cam Zurhaar won’t feature in North Melbourne season closer against Adelaide on Saturday after sustaining a significant ankle injury.
Zurhaar was caught in a tackle during the first quarter of Sunday's win over Richmond in Hobart, and was substituted out of the game.
Scans confirmed a syndesmosis injury, and Zurhaar underwent surgery for the injury on Tuesday.
"It's disappointing news for Cam who has played in every game this year," North Melbourne head of performance Kevin White said.
"But he should recover to full function across the off-season period."
Young gun George Wardlaw is expected to train on Thursday despite suffering an ankle sprain in the second quarter against the Tigers.
"Across the second the half he had another smaller roll on it, so the conservative decision was made to put him on ice towards the end of the last quarter," White said.
"He is in recovery mode early this week."
Defender Riley Hardeman has been progressing through the AFL's mandated concussion protocol, following his blow to the head in Round 22 against Greater Western Sydney.
Hardeman will be assessed on Tuesday to determine his availability for unrestricted training on Thursday, White said.
Small forward Zac Banch will also look to prove his fitness as he pushes towards a return from a rib issue.
"Zac has been progressing each session with his ability to increase intensity and football function," White said.
"He joined non-contact drills last Friday and topped up for a game-loading session to prepare for potential selection this week."
Ruck-forward Callum Coleman-Jones will miss out on the Kangaroos' final weekend of action but isn't far away from fully recovering from a calf injury.
"Callum had been slow early to progress his on-field loading with his calf but across the back end of last week he has turned a corner," White said.
"He'll look to progress his speed and footy conditioning this week before getting cleared next week so that he can go into the off-season healthy.
In positive news, Aidan Corr (calf) and Eddie Ford (hamstring) both made successful returns from their injuries via the VFL game at Southport over the weekend.
Injury List
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