ST KILDA is keen to see as much football as possible from veteran pair Nick Riewoldt and Leigh Montagna before making a decision on their futures, according to coach Alan Richardson.

Champion forward Riewoldt, who turns 35 in October, remains in the dark about his future with six home-and-away rounds to play, with 33-year-old Montagna also yet to receive a deal for 2018. 

Richardson said the club was working through a number of contracts with its young team and wanted to let the season play out further before making key list management decisions. 

"There's still a quarter of the year to go in terms of footy, and that's been the conversation all the way through," the coach said as the Saints flew out of Melbourne for Saturday night's clash against Sydney.

"Let's get a lot of footy under our belt and then make a decision from there. It's as simple as that really.

"We've just got to wait and see how players are feeling. 

"You refer to Nick and 'Joey' and other guys on the list who at this stage have no guarantee … it's unfortunate, but that's just the way footy is.

"It's multi-factorial and we've got to wait and see how they're feeling, what do we think about them, and there's still a bit of footy to play out."

Asked if the club needed to handle the decisions on long-term servants sensitively, Richardson said: "The key to that is communication, and we're really confident with our list management group that we communicate often and at the right time to make sure people know where they sit".

Riewoldt's manager, Tom Petroro, said there was "no ultimatum" for St Kilda to reach a decision within a certain timeframe, with the club great prepared to hang up the boots if a new deal was not presented. 

"Yes, there is uncertainty (about 2018) and because of the uncertainty, there is no need for a timeline for it to play out to … if it's over, it's over," Petroro told Channel Nine.

"Everyone knows where they sit, we have all been in constant dialogue, and when the time is right, it will all be worked out, and everyone is understanding of that."

Team structure and frustration at poor performances prompted St Kilda to make four changes to the team that lost to Essendon by 61 points last Friday night, the Saints bringing in contested midfielders Luke Dunstan and Blake Acres, ruckman Billy Longer and debutant Rowan Marshall.

The coach will put faith in Jake Carlisle and Nathan Brown to quell superstar Swan Lance Franklin, challenging the midfield to make sure the service given to the key forward was not clean.  

"We plan for his best and he's in great form," the coach said of Franklin.

"We know if we don't get pressure on the footy, then it's going to be more of a challenge.

"We think our big blokes in Brown and Carlisle in particular have had really strong seasons to date."