However, it is unclear when Croad, 28, will make his return to the field, with assistant coach John Barker confirming Croad’s rehabilitation still has a long way to go.
"He's got a lot of boxes to tick before he's up and going in terms of being able to play," Barker said from the Hawks' community training session in Pakenham on Tuesday.
"We're hopeful that he'll keep improving and getting better and be thereabouts sooner rather than later.
"As we get a bit of a feel for how [his running's] going, we'll have a better indication of when he's going to be right to play."
It's a similar situation for Norm Smith Medallist Luke Hodge, who had December surgery to repair a torn shoulder cartilage, and Barker acknowledged that the pre-season absence of senior players would create more opportunities for youngsters.
"There's obviously a lot of young guys that have been in full training since November and they've been training really well," he said.
"The NAB Cup gives all the teams the opportunity to have a look at those young guys and I'm sure we'll be no different."
Well aware that his club will enter the new season as the 'hunted', given its September triumph, Barker said that there was still plenty of work to be done for Hawthorn to hold its place in the upper reaches of the competition.
"It's a pretty tough competition and no doubt Geelong was the form team of last year," he said of the Cats, who lost just one game in the home and away rounds.
"There'll be a lot of high improvers over the pre-season so I think time will tell as to who's the number one [side] early in the season."
And the Hawks' rolling zone – so effective in the run to the premiership – could breed some additional challenges as opponents look to emulate it.
"Teams will try and get better at beating [the zone] and they'll even try to implement their own forms of it," he said.
"We've got to keep improving. That's the challenge for the boys every time they get out onto the track, to keep improving and keep getting better because every other team is."
Hawthorn meets Melbourne in its first NAB Cup match at Aurora Stadium on February 21.
Its premiership defence kicks off with a rematch against Geelong at the MCG on March 27.
