Craig Bellamy will prioritise having the Storm ready for week one of the finals over winning the minor premiership and is likely to rest players next round.
A deflated Bellamy was displeased with his team's application as their 19-match winning streak was ended by Parramatta on Saturday night.
The surprising 22-10 defeat ruined Melbourne's chance to secure the JJ Giltinan Shield and surpass the Jack Gibson-coached 1975 Eastern Suburbs team's all-time record of 19 consecutive victories.
While beating the Sharks in the final round would ensure the Storm finish first - either outright or on differential - the coach hinted at putting several players on ice with a bigger focus in mind.
It was a strategy Melbourne used last year, and while they lost to the Dragons in round 25, they went on to win the competition.
"We'll look at what we think's best for the week after," Bellamy said.
Stick to the plan: Bellamy still intent on resting players next week
"It might be that we need another game together after tonight. I don't know. But I think we'll stick to our plan and rest a few guys.
"Whatever we think is going to have us ready best for the first week, that's what we'll do. But we have some work to do."
One man who won't be lining up is star winger Josh Addo-Carr, who left the field after 48 minutes with a hamstring injury.
"Josh is not too bad, I don't think, but it's only two weeks 'til the finals. He's got a hamstring problem and he'll struggle to play," Bellamy said.
Finals headache: Bellamy says Addo-Carr will 'struggle to play'
A completion rate of 71 per cent - compared to Parramatta's 90 per cent - frustrated Bellamy, who apparently gave his team a roasting.
"He sprayed the F out of us at half-time and I can only imagine what's about to come down," Brandon Smith told Fox League.
"Pray for our souls."
Bellamy pinpointed impatience as Melbourne's downfall, saying: "What went wrong stemmed from our lack of respect for the ball."
As for whether the carrot of achieving the greatest win streak in the sport's history affected his players, Bellamy was unsure.
"You wouldn't think it's too much pressure with that. We had plenty to play for. It was Felise [Kaufusi's] 150th [game]," he said.
"There are only about 14 guys in our club that have done that. That's a big milestone for him, but we didn't give a yelp, really.
"Last week, we might've been thinking that perhaps we're just waiting for the finals," he added.
Lumelume has too much speed on the outside
"But that's deflating … I can't remember the last time I've been as disappointed in a milestone game for one of our players.
"With all due respect, I'm a bit embarrassed that we came up with that performance on a night where Felise was playing his 150th."
The biggest issue for the Storm could be with the match review committee after Jesse Bromwich (crusher tackle), Harry Grant (hip drop) and Brandon Smith (high tackle) were all placed on report.
"There seemed to be a lot of laying down there tonight, but anyway. From everyone," Bellamy said.
