Collingwood senior coach Craig McRae has immediately turned his attention to the trade period as the Magpies look to bounce back from a disappointing preliminary final exit, falling to Brisbane by 29 points at the MCG on Saturday.
McRae said that the Magpies are planning to retain the signatures of key veterans Jamie Elliott and Brody Mihocek to maintain their forward line depth in 2026, with Elliott notably being one of Collingwood's best players this season, let alone in the preliminary final where he kicked a game-high four goals.
McRae stated that both long-time club servants have been tabled two-year offers from the Magpies as the pair weigh up deals from rival clubs.
"We're hopeful [Elliott and Mihocek will be here next season]," McRae said post-game.
"It's been put to the backburner and now it's the 'front burner'. Let's get busy and work through that.
"Jamie was enormous once again tonight and has had an incredible year. He's a wanted player and we've offered these guys two-year contracts, both of them, so I'm not sure why it's been led through the media."
Mihocek reportedly has interest from the Melbourne Demons while Elliott has been targeted by Queensland-based clubs in the hopes of tempting him to the state where much of his family resides.
Collingwood have also been linked to recruiting several star talents from rival clubs ahead of the off-season.
The Magpies fell short in the Jack Silvagni sweepstakes, but have since been connected with in-demand forward Charlie Curnow, per a shock report from Channel 7's Xander McGuire, and Melbourne premiership defender Steven May, who was recently told to explore his options by the Demons.
McRae affirmed that Collingwood will be active in the trade period but admitted it's unlikely the club dismisses their draft capital as willingly as they did last off-season.
"I'm not going to stand still trying to get better," McRae said.
"Last year I said it was players over picks; it won't be that extreme this year.
"There will be a balance, but we want to bring talent into our organisation that makes us better. We won't stand still on that.
"I'm sure our fans want to hear that, I'm sure our players want to hear that we won't stand still and want to keep improving ourselves.
"If there is an opportunity to bring high end talent in, we will explore that."
