MELBOURNE has ruled out the prospect of Dean Kent making a return this season, with the forward undergoing surgery to repair the AC joint in his shoulder.

Kent injured the AC joint in his right shoulder after coming off second best in a ground level contest with Giant Lachie Whitfield as the pair battled for a loose ball in round 23.

The forward missed Friday night's elimination final against Geelong and was expected to be sidelined for a 2-3 week period before the decision was made to book him in for surgery.

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"Dean was trying to get back to play, but his progress was really slow, so unfortunately he’s had to go into surgery today (Tuesday) on that AC joint," Demons elite performance manager Dave Misson told the club's website.

In better news, veteran Bernie Vince – who suffered an AC joint injury while playing in the VFL in August is a chance to play in the VFL this weekend as he bids to earn a recall should Melbourne progress past Hawthorn in Friday night's semi-final.

The initial thought was that Vince, who has already announced that he will retire at season's end, would also need surgery and miss the rest of the year.

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"Bernie is a miracle man. He's been really keen to get back to play and he trained with the group today, without too much contact," Misson said.

"He's doing some controlled contact with 'Crossy' (rehab coach Daniel Cross), with a view to going down to Casey and doing full training with the boys on Thursday night – with a view to potentially playing. 

"So, Bernie's done a fantastic job and he’s on track to maybe have a game in the VFL this week."

Youngster Oskar Baker re-injured his hamstring in a training session on Saturday and Misson said his season is over.