Defender Dylan Grimes could make his return in Richmond's heavyweight clash with Geelong next Friday night.

The Tigers notched another win on Wednesday night in a tight struggle against Fremantle before a late flurry of goals stretched the final margin to 27 points.

But after their ninth win in 11 games, the Tigers will rapidly shift their focus to next week's important clash with their fellow premiership fancies.

They are also set to be bolstered by the return of some key players, with midfielder Kane Lambert (hip) and backman Grimes (hamstring) likely inclusions against the red-hot Cats.

"Lambert will play next week and we think Grimes will be available as well which is another positive," Hardwick said after the win over the Dockers.

"Then Shane [Edwards] comes out of the [transition] hub for the Adelaide game (in round 18) and we think Dave Astbury will be thereabouts hopefully then.

"We've got some guys who are coming back but we need those guys to jell. They haven't played together for a long period of time but they are very good players."