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Put aside thin ice. Currently, there’s no ice.

As NHL players preparing to return to the Olympics for the initial occasion in more than a decade, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Local organizers confirmed on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia arena that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a smaller venue – and that no additional trial has been scheduled yet.

This situation creates the possibility that there might not be a game held in the primary venue until the competition begins for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the inaugural event.

“The timeline will be very close to the beginning of the games, the schedule is very tight. However, we were aware,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.

The competition that was supposed to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being established inside a giant convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will stage secondary matches during the Olympics.

Typically, new Olympic venues are trialled at least the year before to holding podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey venue, it’s not only about the ice and making sure that the rink is ready and safe. It’s also about checking concession stands, bathrooms and everything else inside a brand-new contemporary stadium.

This new facility, which is being constructed by a private company, is scheduled to become the nation's biggest covered stadium. For after the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential future host of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.

In spite of the delays and worries, expensive tickets are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia arena. Seats for the men’s gold medal game on 22 February – the final day of the Olympics – are going for as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). This exceeds for any other athletic competition at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely passes for the opening and closing ceremonies cost more.

The return of NHL players at the Olympics was revealed in February of last year, with the premier hockey league allowing its athletes to compete in the Winter Olympics for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

The men’s Olympic hockey competition is set to run from 11-22 February. The women’s tournament occurs from 5-19 February.