Hawthorn could be without Brian Lake and Paul Puopolo for Saturday night's clash against North Melbourne.

Lake strained his medial ligament early in the Hawks' loss to Port Adelaide, with coach Alastair Clarkson saying he'd be surprised if he was available this week.

"He's got a medial ligament strain, we're uncertain of the severity of it though," Clarkson said in his post-match media conference.

"I'd suggest, because he couldn't come back on tonight, it was just too unstable, that he'd be very, very unlikely to play next week."

Fellow key-defender James Frawley has already been sidelined with a shoulder injury, with Ryan Schoenmakers next in line for an opportunity.

AFL.com.au reported Puopolo suffered a hamstring strain in the defeat, with the small-forward subbed out early in the third quarter.