Following Hawthorn’s busy 2016 trade period, Hawks fans can expect to see a few fresh faces playing more permanent roles in the season ahead.

Speaking to RSN on Wednesday morning, Hodge believes the off-season departures of Jordan Lewis and Sam Mitchell have opened the door for a new wave of developing midfielders.

“We’ve got a lot of guys who have been waiting to stand up.

“[Lewis and Mitchell] were probably taking on a lot of the midfield roles, but now there’s so much room for the [younger] blokes to grow as players and also as leaders, which is a great opportunity for them and for our footy club.”

“Bringing in Jaeger O’Meara and Tom Mitchell has added to the talent field as well.”

Indeed, Hodge sounded thoroughly impressed when asked about one of the Hawks’ newest recruits.

“Tommy Mitchell is probably the most competitive bloke I’ve seen.”

“At every stoppage drill he’s teaching blokes what to do, and he’s getting his hands on the ball straight up, so that’s a great start.”

With the off-season transformation of the Hawks' playing list, Hodge concedes it is difficult to see how the group is going to mesh without having played a proper match.

“The way we’re training at the moment, it’s looking really good, but you just don’t really know until games come around.

“Feb 17 is probably going to be the first time we’ll see a good hit out.”

The Hawks will take on Geelong in their first pre-season encounter at UTAS Stadium, Launceston.