Pavlich held his lead in the Coleman Medal with three goals in Saturday's 22-point win over Richmond, but he received treatment throughout the match for groin, hamstring and Achilles tendon complaints.
The star goalkicker also appeared to suffer a corked calf in a marking contest midway though the first quarter but played out the match, helping drive Fremantle back into the top eight for the first time since round eight.
Lyon said Pavlich had been in doubt for Saturday's match all week after experiencing hamstring and Achilles tendon tightness following last Saturday's loss to Adelaide at AAMI Stadium.
"It's a credit to Matthew; he finds a way. He didn't train all week," Lyon said.
"We didn't think he would play.
"We had specialists come in and work with Matthew. The sports science division and medical team just find a way to get players up.
"We're pretty confident he'll play (against North Melbourne) ... he looked quite dangerous."
