North Melbourne will be without Robin Nahas for much of the finals run-in, with the forward requiring surgery on his injured shoulder.
Nahas appeared to dislocate his shoulder after being tackled by Neville Jetta in the second quarter of Sunday's game against Melbourne.
He was unable to continue, using his guernsey as a sling as he walked off the ground before being escorted to hospital.
North Melbourne football director Geoff Walsh said scans and a subsequent visit to a specialist revealed bad news.
"Unfortunately, he did a bit of damage," Walsh said.
"He'll have an operation to repair his AC joint."
"The best case scenario would be to have him back within six to seven weeks at this stage which means he could be back in action late in the year."
The 26-year-old had recaptured his best form since moving from Richmond last year, but now faces a race against time to play a role in the Kangaroos' expected finals campaign.
Thankfully for the Kangaroos, Andrew Swallow is in contention for this weekend's trip to Brisbane after being cleared of a serious knee injury.
He twisted his knee late in North Melbourne's win over the Demons.
"We'll be treating Andrew very cautiously this week to see how he pulls up ... (there's) nothing significant and structurally he's been cleared of any damage which is a good outcome," Walsh commented.
Star Collingwood rookie Tom Langdon could also return this weekend after being concussed in the Magpies' loss to Hawthorn.
Collingwood football director Rodney Eade said the eight-day break to their match up counted in Langdon's favour.
The Magpies assessed Tyson Goldsack as a 90 per cent chance to return, while former captain Nick Maxwell will face a test on his injured calf.
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