North Melbourne ruckman David Hale joined Hawthorn on Friday and the Hawks' general manager of player personnel and strategy, Chris Pelchen, said the former Kangaroo would help the club's emerging big man department.
With the Hale trade completed, Pelchen said the Hawks had "other irons in the fire" and would continue to be active before Monday's 2pm deadline.
One of those is Western Bulldogs forward Hill, earmarked by the Hawks as a target after the departure of small forward Rhan Hooper and the uncertain future of Carl Peterson.
Hill has already told the Dogs of his desire to be traded to Hawthorn.
While the Hawks gained an extra third-round pick from North in the Hale deal, Pelchen said it was little help in prising the talented Bulldog away from Whitten Oval.
"We're a little way apart, that'd be fair to say," Pelchen said of discussions with the Bulldogs.
"They are looking for a higher draft selection than we're willing to exchange."
Pelchen said the Bulldogs had initially expressed interest in securing a player from Hawthorn, but with their first two picks being used on father-son selections and their compensation pick for Gold Coast recruit Jarrod Harbrow set aside to secure disgruntled Brisbane Lion Justin Sherman, the focus had switched to draft picks.
"It's just made it very, very difficult," Pelchen said.
"They're outside the first [and] second rounds of the draft and they're trying to get back into that range and that's the range we're trying to stay in ourselves, so that's why the stalemate exists."
Meanwhile, Hale's recruitment brings the number of potential ruckmen on the Hawks' senior list to seven, joining Brent Renouf, Simon Taylor, Max Bailey, Wayde Skipper, Luke Lowden and Sam Grimley.
However, Pelchen conceded the club would need to look at the number of talls it took into 2011.
"I suppose that sort of evaluation takes place annually," he said.
"It'd be fair to say yes, we'll re-visit our total numbers, but having said that we haven't committed to moving anyone at this stage from our current group."
Follow our complete coverage of the 2010 AFL exchange period from October 5-11. No trades are official until paperwork has been accepted by the AFL and formally recognised after 2pm on Monday, October 11.
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