WEST Coast has confirmed Drew Petrie will miss about 10 weeks of after breaking several bones in his left hand.
Petrie suffered the injury in the opening stages of Sunday's win over North Melbourne and the 34-year-old was due to have surgery on Tuesday afternoon.
Petrie's absence is a big blow to the Eagles, who are already missing star ruck duo Nic Naitanui (knee) and Scott Lycett (shoulder).
Eagles coach Adam Simpson confirmed journeyman Jonathan Giles would earn a recall to partner Nathan Vardy in the ruck for Saturday's clash with St Kilda in Perth.
West Coast general manager of football Craig Vozzo said Petrie might be able to return a tad sooner than 10 weeks, but it was too early to tell.
And Vozzo rubbished claims Lycett might need to spend up to five months on the sidelines with his injured shoulder.
"Scotty Lycett has had his op now and you get the normal sign off from the surgeon that all went well," Vozzo said.
"He's obviously recovering. I think there were some reports of it being around a four-to-five-month injury. It's certainly not that.
"We are anticipating that, all things being well, that he will recover in a 10-12 week phase."
Rookie Simon Tunbridge, who underwent a hybrid LARS surgery during the off-season, had to undergo a minor procedure last week to alleviate pinching in his knee.
Vozzo said it was only a slight hiccup in his recovery.