HAWTHORN skipper Luke Hodge will step up contact work at training this week in a bid to make an early comeback from his fractured right arm against St Kilda on Saturday, teammate Sam Mitchell says.

Hodge was expected to miss between four and six weeks after suffering the break late in the Easter Monday loss to Geelong, but the tough-as-nails captain is making his case to return in Launceston.

Match preview: Hawthorn v St Kilda

While the Hawks haven't rued the absence of their skipper in wins over West Coast and the Western Bulldogs, the 31-year-old would be a timely inclusion ahead of a tricky run of matches.

After the Saints, Hawthorn faces Adelaide (MCG), Greater Western Sydney (Spotless Stadium), Richmond (MCG), Fremantle (Launceston) and the Sydney Swans (MCG). 

"We know that it's important that we get him (Hodge) back, but when he gets back, he stays back. If it means one more (week), then so be it," Mitchell said. 

"He's not doing much contact (work at training), or he didn't last week.

"He's playing a fair bit, doing a lot of the training and a lot of the running and with an upper limb injury you can run around still and your fitness doesn't drop off.

"It's just going to be the ball-handling and the tackling and spoiling and the physical side of the game, that he's never had too much trouble with really, so I think he'll be fine when he's right to go 100 per cent.

"I think the physical side of the training will start to step up now." 

Hodge, spearhead Jarryd Roughead (knee) and wingman Bradley Hill (wrist) headline the Hawks' injury list, while Liam Shiels (wrist) got through his return unscathed in the nailbiting three-point win over the Dogs.

Hodge trained with the main group early in Tuesday's session at Waverley with a protective brace on his arm, however Hill appears unlikely to be available to face the Saints after only running laps.

Roughead didn't appear on the track at all, with the star goalkicker still about 8-10 weeks away from playing after his posterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Hawthorn's injury toll has had a silver lining, with several youngsters waiting in the wings granted opportunities to showcase their abilities.

Strong-marking forward James Sicily stepped up in memorable fashion against the Dogs, booting three last-quarter goals – including the match-winner from 50m - as the Hawks snatched a famous victory.

Mitchell was the first to leap onto the 21-year-old to celebrate after the final siren, but the veteran campaigner joked that Sicily wasn't being allowed to puff his chest out around his teammates.

"He always walks around a little bit like that," Mitchell laughed. 

"But that's where I think footy clubs are really great places. As soon as you get one foot further in front of yourself than where you should be, footy clubs are a pretty good place to bring you back down to earth.

"So there's plenty of reviews going on about things he didn't do as well as we would've liked.

"He obviously played an important part in the game when it mattered, but he's a kid, he makes plenty of mistakes, so there was plenty of things we could focus on to make sure he keeps his feet on the ground."