MELBOURNE midfielder Clayton Oliver had surgery to repair a broken finger on Monday and willed himself to get up for the game against Carlton on Sunday, coach Simon Goodwin has revealed.

Oliver wore a glove on his left hand for protection in the 109-point after breaking his finger in last week's 69-point win over Gold Coast at the Gabba.

"It certainly hasn't been well documented, but he (Oliver) broke his finger last week and had an operation on Monday," Goodwin said.

"He got up for this week's game and it's credit to Clayton, it's credit to our medical department.

"To be able to have that kind of procedure done and still be able to play, you wouldn't have even noticed with Clayton in the way he goes about his footy that he's had an operation."

Oliver gathered 26 disposals (15 contested) and had five clearances, while also booting a goal in the final term that put Melbourne's lead above 100.

The final margin of 109 points was Melbourne's largest victory in 25 years.

Asked how Oliver got through the game, Goodwin said it came down to the reigning best and fairest winner's toughness and attitude.

"It comes down to the athlete. If the athlete's stressed about it, if the athlete's comfortable, then he can continue to push forward," Goodwin said.

"Right from the outset Clayton was keen to play and not just play, he wanted to play well. It comes down to the athlete's mindset, and his was outstanding."

Teammate Christian Petracca developed an infected finger earlier in the year as a result of a bite from his pet dog, forcing him to miss the round six game against Essendon.

"A dog didn't bite him, it (Oliver's injury) came from a footy field incident which was pleasing," Goodwin said with a chuckle.

Goodwin said it was pleasing to keep the foot on the gas and kick a high score, with the Demons totalling 315 points in their last two weeks against the Suns and Blues.

"That's two weeks in a row now, and I think our leaders have been really instrumental in that, they've been driving a high standard around the footy club and just getting the basics right," he said.

"That was a real focus in our game going into the last quarter, to get the basics right, continue to drive those and do the simple things well, and I thought the selflessness and team-first actions were outstanding, and that's been a big part of our footy club for a while now.

"We're starting to see the rewards of that with shot selection and roles within games."

Melbourne charged into the top four with a scoring blitz against the Blues, with 13 individual goalkickers highlighting a ruthless team performance.

Jake Melksham (five goals) and Tom McDonald (four) were the main beneficiaries of Melbourne's dominance, but Goodwin said it was most pleasing to see the team's emphasis on sharing the footy.

"If you see the great teams … I go back to Geelong and Hawthorn, they share the ball inside 50 and that's been a hallmark of the Tigers and they're very team-first in the way they go about their inside 50s," Goodwin said.

"That's the connection and selflessness that you need to increase your accuracy."