IT'S A scary prospect for opposition sides, but preliminary finalist Melbourne looks set be stronger at both ends of the ground despite the off-season departure of Jesse Hogan.
From the moment Hogan arrived at the club as a 17-year-old, most Demons fans would have considered any potential move by the star forward back to his native WA as a doomsday scenario.
But the improvement of key targets Tom McDonald and Sam Weideman, coupled with Hogan's injury troubles and desire for a fresh start slowly changed the landscape.
Further helping ease the pain of the fan favourite's departure for Fremantle was that it gave the Demons the ammunition to pull the trigger on a trade for Gold Coast key defender Steven May.
"He's fit in with the group really well ... he's passionate about being here, about winning and helping us go to the next level," McDonald said of the former Suns co-captain.
"It's exciting for him and it's exciting for us.
"Compared to new guys who are younger he's got more of a voice and had more of an impact, but we don't really expect that from him.
"He doesn't have to be captain here.
"We just want him to come in and play good footy, add his experience where he can, but we don't want him to feel like he has to be a captain at this club because that's not why we got him here."
Melbourne rode the league's most potent attack into last season's finals, but they also conceded the most points of any finalist.
It was an achilles heel that West Coast brutally exploited in their 66-point preliminary final thrashing.
With May - and hopefully long-term knee victim Jake Lever - adding steel to the back line next year, that weakness should turn into a strength.
At the other end of the ground, McDonald knows a lot is expected of him with Hogan gone.
The 26-year-old, recently rated by Champion Data as one of the competition's elite forwards, enjoyed a career-best season in 2018 with 53 goals despite pre-season surgery on both ankles.
The Demons were also the top-ranked team for marks inside 50, with McDonald a key factor with 59 for the campaign placing him fifth in the league.
"I understand the situation I'm in. More often than not I might get the No.1 key defender from the opposition where last year sometimes it was Jesse and sometimes it was me," McDonald said.
"It's more pressure and expectation, but hopefully I can find ways to deal with that.
"It's going to be another challenge and I hope I've got another level to go to ... that's the plan."
