Hawthorn captain Jarryd Roughead believes there are "blue skies" ahead for his team, despite the club being hit by three significant injuries.

Superstar Cyril Rioli will miss up to 12 weeks with a posterior cruciate ligament injury, gun defender Ben Stratton will miss four to six weeks with a jarred knee while key backman James Frawley will be out for up to two months with turf toe.

They are three major blows for the Hawks, who have won two in a row for the first time since last July, an incredible statistic given the club's recent dominance in the competition.

But Roughead is looking on the bright side.

"It's not ideal knowing that you've got blokes who are going to miss extended periods of footy but, in saying that, Box Hill are 5-0 and you've got blokes who are banging down the door.

"So you could look at it and say it could be flattening for the group or you could look at it how we have and it's just exciting for the group knowing that we've got these blokes banging down the door wanting to play senior footy.

"We've always said that the depth of the squad has been key for us in the past five or six years and we'll see it come to play this weekend."

The attention will now to turn to who replaces Rioli, Stratton and Frawley, given they're all set to miss significant chunks of football.

Kaiden Brand, 23, who has played four games this season, is a near certainty to come in for Frawley in a key defensive role, but the other two spots seem more open to the interpretation of the Hawks' match committee.

Midfielder and half-forward Kade Stewart - who's played just four games at senior level - is sure to be considered, while Kurt Heatherley and Brendan Whitecross will also be in the frame.

It is unknown whether Alastair Clarkson will consider recalling the out-of-favour Taylor Duryea.

Duryea, who has barely missed a game in the past three seasons, was dropped after the opening round loss to Essendon and hasn't returned to the senior team.

Roughead didn't rule out a reprieve for recruit Tyrone Vickery, who the captain says has nothing to prove to his new teammates.

"He doesn't have to do anything. You look at what he's done at Box Hill ??? I think he's the leading goal kicker at Box Hill for us, so he's gone back with a great attitude.

"Obviously with Timmy [O'Brien] coming in and playing that role, it's kept Ty out. But who knows, with what happens this week, O'Brien could go back and Vickery could come in, it's a match committee thing."

At 3-5, the Hawks are 14th on the ladder behind Carlton and Gold Coast on percentage.

They face a tough fortnight after Saturday night's clash with Collingwood, with matches against Sydney and Port Adelaide away from home.

But Roughead has been encouraged by the side's form over the last two weeks.

"I think if you look at it, there is more blue sky than what we have seen in the past. There's a lot of blue sky there ready for us to latch on to.

"There's been some very good improvement. Obviously in the first four rounds we were pretty disappointing.

"The last two weeks we've been showing some upside, we beat a really quality team in Melbourne who went across and Adelaide on the weekend and then we go down [to Tasmania] and even though we didn't play as we would have liked against Brisbane, there were still some positive signs."