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Put aside thin ice. Currently, the surface isn't ready.

With NHL athletes preparing to return to the Olympic Games for the first time in over a decade, building work on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Local organizers announced on Wednesday that the main test event for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia arena that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a more compact arena – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

The issue creates the possibility that there might not be a match held in the primary venue until the competition begins for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the start of the Olympics, the schedule is highly compressed. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The event that was intended to test the Santagiulia ice was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey venue, which is being set up inside a massive convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will host secondary matches during the Olympics.

Usually, new Olympic venues are trialled at least the year before to hosting medal events. And with a large hockey venue, it’s not only about the playing surface and making sure that the rink is ready and secure. It’s additionally about testing food outlets, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new contemporary stadium.

This new facility, which is being constructed by a commercial firm, is slated to become the nation's largest covered stadium. Following the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a potential future host of the ATP Finals tennis event.

In spite of the postponements and concerns, high-priced passes are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Tickets for the men’s gold medal game on 22 February – the closing day of the games – are priced at as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). That’s more than the price of any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely passes for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was announced in February of last year, with the premier hockey organization permitting its players to participate in the Winter Olympics for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

Men's Olympic hockey tournament is scheduled to run from 11-22 February. The women’s event occurs from 5-19 February.