MELBOURNE'S midfield depth has taken a hit, with burly onballer Aaron vandenBerg likely to miss the rest of the season with an ankle injury.

The rookie revelation injured his ankle at training last Friday and was replaced by Matt Jones for Sunday's game against North Melbourne at the MCG.

The Demons expect him to be sidelined for up to three weeks, meaning he will be touch and go for the club's final game against Greater Western Sydney on September 6. 

"He was just doing some one-on-one marking at training and it was a pretty innocuous landing incident with his ankle," elite performance manager Dave Misson told the club’s website.

"The ankle’s pretty sore and it’s pretty swollen, so we’ll just assess it as we go.

"He’ll miss at least a couple of weeks, but we’ll just monitor that over the next few days."

The elevated rookie, who recently re-signed until the end of 2017, was one of Melbourne's best when the Demons upset the Bulldogs by 39 points in round eight.

That day, he finished with 29 disposals and 11 tackles in his finest performance for the year.

He has averaged a tick under 17 disposals and five tackles per game this season.

Pressure around the ball was a key component of the Demons' round-eight win and they will miss the 24-year-old's presence for Sunday's clash at Etihad Stadium.

However, midfielder Aidan Riley could be called upon to fill that void after collecting 36 disposals while playing for Casey in the VFL at the weekend.

Defender Christian Salem could also return to the senior side after three games back at the lower level, following a stint on the sidelines with a hamstring injury.

Salem's kicking skills from half-back have been desperately missed since he went out of the side in round seven, and he will be seriously considered for the match against the Dogs.

Speedy half-forward Dean Kent is listed as one week away from resuming after a setback in his recovery from a serious hamstring problem.

Tall utility Sam Frost is a three-week proposition in his battle with a lingering toe complaint, meaning his season may also be over.