West Coast were left without a fit player on their bench after five key stars were injured during Sunday's 41-point AFL western derby loss to Fremantle.
Meanwhile while Melbourne impressed against Sydney and Gold Coast stunned Geelong to keep the reigning premiers winless after three.
It was carnage for the Eagles during the second term as captain Luke Shuey (hamstring), All-Australian defender Jeremy McGovern (hamstring) and former Lion Alex Witherden (concussion) went down.
The pain continued in the third term as forwards Jamie Cripps (ankle) and Liam Ryan (head/leg) joined the wounded.
It meant that for the final five minutes of the third quarter, West Coast had nobody on the bench.
Ryan's left leg was strapped up and he came on early in the final quarter, but he could only hobble around and ended up giving away a crucial 50m penalty when he couldn't stand a mark in time.
He didn't see out the game, with West Coast left without rotation once Ryan headed back down to the change rooms.
The Eagles defied the carnage to close the gap to two points early in the final quarter, but the Dockers slammed through the final six goals of the match to secure the 16.12 (108) to 9.13 (67) victory in front of 56,090 fans.
Shuey punched an advertising banner in frustration after injuring his hamstring in the opening minutes of the second quarter.
The skipper has a history of soft tissue injuries and he appears set for at least a month on the sidelines.
McGovern's tear looked even worse, with the star defender pulling up abruptly and grabbing high up on his left hamstring after following Matt Taberner to a marking contest.
Witherden was left seeing stars after running with the flight of the ball and being accidentally flattened by Dockers midfielder Jaeger O'Meara in an airborne collision.
Cripps had to be carried off by two trainers after his ankle twisted awkwardly under the weight of Dockers defender Alex Pearce.
Ryan landed heavily on his back and neck after soaring high in a marking contest and being accidentally flipped in mid-air.
He was carried off the field by two trainers, before bravely returning for a stint in the last quarter.
The Dockers six-goal blitz to finish the match ensured the final margin ballooned out, but West Coast can be proud of their efforts to stay in the contest for as long as they did.
Dockers midfielder Caleb Serong won the Glendinning-Allan medal with 35 possessions, eight clearances, eight tackles and four score assists.
Prized Fremantle recruit Luke Jackson played his best game since crossing to the Dockers, finishing with two goals, three marks, seven tackles, 17 hitouts and 12 disposals.
Michael Walters booted four goals, Sean Darcy tallied 52 hitouts, five clearances and a goal, and Sam Switkowski (21 disposals, two goals) was a revelation in the midfield.
For West Coast, Oscar Allen booted three goals in the opening term but was unable to add to the tally after that, while Jack Darling also finished with three goals.
West Coast edged Fremantle 5.2 (32) to 5.1 (31) in the highest-scoring opening quarter in derby history.
Jackson was mobbed by his teammates after shanking through an early goal, while Jye Amiss sent the crowd wild with two goals in as many minutes to give Fremantle a 10-point lead.
Allen turned momentum back West Coast's way with three goals in the space of six minutes, with the onslaught including a spectacular diving mark over the top of Brennan Cox.
That was where the fun ended for West Coast, with the injury carnage cruelling their victory hopes.
Demons make a statement with win over Swans
Teen prospect Jacob van Rooyen has soared high and given Melbourne fans a glimpse of their AFL future with three goals in a 50-point hammering of Sydney.
Midfield guns Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca starred at the feet of influential ruckman Brodie Grundy in the Demons' 21.8 (134) to 12.12 (84) victory at the MCG.
Bailey Fritsch and Kade Chandler matched van Rooyen with three goals each and Steven May helped keep Swans superstar Lance Franklin mostly subdued.
But it was the 19-year-old debutant whose performance gave coach Simon Goodwin fresh cause for optimism as Melbourne seek a new premiership formula.
Van Rooyen hit up Alex Neal-Bullen for the opening goal and booted the second himself from a free kick as the Demons burst 28 points clear by quarter-time.
Sydney gradually clawed their way back into the contest and got within six points during the third term before Melbourne steadied.
Van Rooyen helped shut the gate with two majors in the final term and provided the highlight with a huge mark on the back of Swans ruckman Peter Ladhams.
The 193cm and 96kg prospect was a first-round draft pick in 2021 but had to bide his time in Melbourne's reserves last year.
He looks set for a bright future after breaking into the senior side.
Melbourne's experienced stars were outstanding, with Petracca (32 disposals, six clearances) and Oliver (25, five and two goals) both shining as the latter celebrated his 150-game milestone.
Petracca was the top-ranked player on the ground for contested possessions (18), score involvements (nine) and metres gained (580) in a superb display, with Oliver not far behind.
Grundy (21 disposals, four clearances) stood up as the No.1 ruckman in the absence of Max Gawn and outpointed Ladhams.
Franklin returned from a one-match suspension and kicked two goals.
But a three-pronged tall forward line failed to fire, with Logan McDonald (one goal) and Joel Amartey (none) quiet.
It was another disappointing day for the Swans in their first trip back to the MCG since last year's grand final embarrassment at the hands of Geelong.
Tom Papley kicked three goals for the Swans, while Callum Mills (25 disposals) and Jake Lloyd (21) fought hard in defeat.
Suns rock Cats as reigning premiers go 0-3
A long-range Jack Lukosius rocket has sunk premiers Geelong to historic depths and help Gold Coast break a six-year losing streak against the Cats.
Geelong became the first team since North Melbourne in 1976 to lose the opening three games in their premiership defence, upset 10.13 (73) to 7.12 (54) at Carrara Stadium on Sunday.
Lukosius kicked a career-high five goals in the low-scoring game were accuracy was optional, his fourth an incredible drop punt from beyond 60 metres late in the fourth quarter.
That gave the Suns a 13-point margin, his final act a curling effort from deep in the pocket to seal the result.
His effort was a bright spot in a torrid affair dominated by dropped marks and inaccuracy, teammate Ben King dropping four first-half marks.
Even in-form Jeremy Cameron (three goals, three behinds) snapped a relatively simple shot out on the full.
It was the Suns' first win of the season, while Chris Scott's men are 0-3 after opening fortnight losses to Collingwood and Carlton.
Lachie Weller (29 disposals) was a standout for the hosts in his second game back from a knee reconstruction, zipping through the line to surge the Suns forward.
The Suns dominated the clearances and stoppages in a special win for foundation player David Swallow, who became the first to play 200 games for the club.
For the Cats, Tom Stewart had a game-high 30 touches after missing just one week with a knee injury.
The Suns dominated the second quarter but let themselves down in front of goal, kicking just one as they managed seven behinds from shots 40m and beyond.
Geelong were no better though, even Cameron catching the bug to snap his effort out on the full.
The Suns led by two points at half-time but soon trailed in third when Cameron corrected his radar.
Lukosius ran in a third goal after marking strongly, while Ben King jagged a goal thanks to Nick Holman's terrific chase and tackle of Tom Stewart.
He and substitute Alex Sexton both missed close-range snaps, Cameron kicking another before Noah Anderson's late major gave the hosts a seven-point lead.
Defender Charlie Ballard showed the forwards how it was done, launching a bomb from outside 50m to kick just his second goal and first since his debut 90 games ago.
Another behind created a 12-point buffer but substitute Gary Rohan bucked the trend with a pure set shot from 50m to bring it back to one kick.
Enter Lukosius though, his missile sparking wild scenes and reignited Stuart Dew's ambition for a maiden finals campaign.
