All Blacks hooker Dane Coles suffered a calf injury in the 16-9 victory over the Canterbury Crusaders last week that forced him from the field, though he returned temporarily when replacement Motu Matu'u went off injured with a shoulder injury.
Third-choice hooker Ash Dixon is also nursing a shoulder injury and Hammett, a former All Blacks hooker himself, listed the number two and 16 (replacement hooker) jerseys as TBA (to be announced) in his side for Friday's match at Waikato Stadium.
Hammett, who leaves the team at the end of the season to move to Cardiff, will wait until the trio have undergone further examination before making a decision on who to include.
He does have a stop-gap measure in replacement prop Reggie Goodes, who has occasionally filled in at hooker this season, including last Saturday's match when Coles was forced off again with 10 minutes remaining.
While there will be a guessing game over the composition of the Hurricanes' front row, Hammett's decision in the loose forwards and midfield was relatively simple with number eight Victor Vito and centre Alapati Leiua both ruled out.
Vito limped off inside the first 10 minutes of the Crusaders game with a calf injury, while Samoa international Leiua followed him shortly afterwards with an ankle injury.
Brad Shields will shift from blindside flanker to number eight for Friday's match with Jack Lam and Ardie Savea on the side of the scrum.
Hadleigh Parkes will come into the starting side at inside centre after he replaced Leiua last Saturday.
The fifth-placed Hurricanes (41 points) must win the match - which is their final regular season game - to give themselves any hope of qualifying for the playoffs, while the two-time champions Chiefs (36) are in ninth and also in danger of missing the post-season.
The Chiefs are in something of a slump having lost four of their past six games, including a 45-8 thrashing at the hands of the Hurricanes in Wellington five weeks ago.
They must win on Friday to ensure their final game of the season against the Auckland Blues on July 11 is not a dead rubber, though any hope of home advantage for the playoffs is gone.
Chiefs coach Dave Rennie has previously said finishing in the top two -- and playing the finals at home -- was important, but the Hamilton-based side, if they make the playoffs, would virtually be assured of having to win three away games in their bid to claim three successive titles.
"Having our home crowd support makes a huge difference to the team," Chiefs co-captain Liam Messam said in a statement.
"With the New Zealand conference so close, that huge vocal support is going to be important.
"We know how crucial this match is."
(Reporting by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Ian Ransom)
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