Skipper damaged a tendon in his hamstring during an intra-club match on the Gold Coast last Friday.
He has undergone surgery to repair the damage and will be unavailable for selection for between six and eight weeks.
Skipper's absence means the Hawks' ruck duties will fall almost exclusively to 21-year-old Brent Renouf.
Renouf, who has played just 23 AFL games, will shoulder the burden in the absence of Simon Taylor whose leg injury will keep him sidelined until at least late June, and Max Bailey who is unlikely to return this year following a second knee reconstruction.
Hawthorn endured a tough run with injuries at the start of last season as it struggled to recover physically after 2008's premiership triumph.
The Hawks never really got on track in 2009 and missed the finals, the first premier to do so since Adelaide ten years earlier.
Coach Alastair Clarkson was hopeful the extra time spent in pre-season would see his team in better health come the opening round.
But the injuries to Bailey, Skipper and Taylor - plus lingering problems to Cyril Rioli (groin) and Shaun Burgoyne (hamstring) have again curtailed the Hawks' preparation.
They are also expected to be without Brad Sewell for at least the first two rounds of the season, after the tough onballer broke his collarbone in a NAB Challenge match against North Melbourne.
Hawthorn plays its first game of the 2010 season against Melbourne on March 27 at the MCG.
