Canterbury five-eighth Josh Reynolds and South Sydney captain Greg Inglis are set to make timely returns from injury this weekend as the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs confront the loss of key players before the finals.

Reynolds is an ideal replacement for injured Blues halfback Trent Hodkinson, while Inglis' return will provide a boost for the Rabbitohs following the loss of star forwards John Sutton and Issac Luke.

Hodkinson, who suffered a wrist injury in the first half of Saturday night's 20-18 defeat of the Knights, has played his last game for the Bulldogs after scans confirmed he had dislocated a bone and would require minor surgery.

The Newcastle-bound playmaker joins a growing list of stars ruled out for the season on the eve of the finals, which includes Sutton and Sydney Roosters prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves.

Having already lost hooker Michael Lichaa for the season, the injury to Hodkinson is a blow to Canterbury's premiership hopes but few clubs have a replacement playmaker of the quality of Reynolds.

With the emergence of Moses Mbye, who began the season in NSW Cup but is now one of the most in-demand players in the NRL, Reynolds was expected to return from the knee injury he suffered in round 20 in the role of bench utility.

However, Reynolds is set to partner Mbye in the halves as the Bulldogs look to claim fourth spot and a second chance in the finals if Cronulla and Melbourne lose next weekend and they beat the Warriors on Sunday night.

Reynolds resumed running last week and there had been speculation he and prop Aidan Tolman would return against the Knights but that did not eventuate.

However, Fairfax Media has been told Reynolds would be given every opportunity to play next weekend and he is expected to make his comeback in the last match of the regular season before the finals.

Either Mbye or centre Tim Lafai are likely to take over goal-kicking duties in Hodkinson's absence and they managed one goal each on Saturday night after Hodkinson left the field.

The loss of Hodkinson also ensures rookie rake Damien Cook will retain hooking duties for the finals after being called up when Lichaa fractured his foot two weeks ago.

Inglis missed last Thursday night's 47-12 thrashing by Brisbane at Allianz Stadium after limping from the field in the previous weekend's loss to Canterbury.

After undergoing surgery to remove loose cartilage around his knee, Inglis will be fit for the finals and is considered a chance of lining up against the Roosters in a match the Rabbitohs need to win to finish higher than seventh place.

Souths lost Sutton with a fractured ankle in the defeat by the Broncos, while Luke has played his last game for the club unless they make it past the opening finals round after accepting a two-match ban for a shoulder charge on Corey Oates.

"It is really good news on GI, the surgeon was very happy," South Sydney's high performance manager Troy Thompson told the club's website.

"It was a relatively simple procedure and the surgeon got in there and got that little bit of fragment out so we are just managing the wound there now and going through our processes to try and get him set for the weekend. He will go through all the processes that we normally do and tick all of the boxes and see how he is going on Friday."

In other injury news, Roosters officials have confirmed that halfback Mitchell Pearce (hamstring) will not play in Friday night's match against Souths, while injured North Queensland pair James Tamou (neck) and Michael Morgan (ankle) are unlikely to return before the finals.