Lachie Henderson is set for another season as the Blues' swingman when he overcomes this week's minor surgery on his left leg. 

The 24-year-old is scheduled for an operation to release his iliotibial band, which runs from the hip to the knee.

The Blues are confident the procedure will only restrict his training for two weeks.

Carlton football manager Andrew McKay said the plan was to again use the key position player at either end of the ground this season, depending on where he was needed from week to week. 

"We'll play him both [forward and back], hopefully. Certainly that's the beauty about Lachie, he's versatile and we've seen him up forward kicking a few goals," McKay told SEN on Wednesday morning.

"He was a forward as a youngster so he knows where to run and he's got a good head for space and awareness and things like that.

"Certainly his height and body work is good in defence so we'd like to use him at both ends; it will just depend on who we play at the time and how they man up and how we man up against opposition."

McKay said the Blues had decided on surgery after Henderson had been troubled by it over the past few weeks. 

He is expected to miss 10 days of running and be fit for the Blues' round one clash against Port Adelaide on March 16. 

"He'll be on the track again within two weeks and he'll be playing in four weeks so we figure if we get it done now he'll be right for round one, whereas it could linger on for a good period of time and we may have to get it done down the track, which means he'd miss games," McKay said.

"We think we've taken the right option here."

Henderson played every game in 2013 and was valuable both as a tall defender and tall forward before finishing third in the John Nicholls Medal.

Dale Thomas and the pre-season's most talked about ankle are tracking better, with the former Collingwood player in full training and looking to put his injury concerns behind him. 

Thomas played just five games last year because of the troublesome ankle that caused the Magpies to baulk at giving him a long-term deal.  

"He's back doing full training now and that's great," McKay said. 

"He obviously had a slower build up than the rest of them.

"He was running before Christmas but now he's in full training and he's doing all the things you need to do in full training, the long kicks and changing direction and all that type of thing and it's holding up well.

"We're confident we'll get a full season out of Daisy."

McKay said the bulk of the Blues' list was "pretty healthy" with just a few players carrying the usual pre-season niggles.

Ruckman Matthew Kreuzer has continued to build slowly and will be in full training in the next week.

The Blues' first draft selection from last November Patrick Cripps has also impressed with his potential so far. 

"He's a good shape; he's a big bodied midfielder for us," McKay said.

"He's got good strong legs and a good strong backside on him. He'll need to build up his tank over the next 12 months or so and get a bit more endurance under his belt but certainly he's got a great stature for it.

"We saw Fremantle go quite well last year with big bodied midfielders and a couple of other teams doing the same, Sydney and those guys.

"If we can get a bit more strength around that ball, that will certainly help and it gives the other guys like Juddy and Murph a chop out."