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

As NHL players preparing to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in more than a ten years, construction on the main 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 facility that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a more compact arena – and that no new test event has been arranged yet.

This situation creates the possibility that there may not be a match held in the primary venue until the puck is dropped 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 beginning of the games, the timeline is very tight. However, we were aware,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.

The competition that was intended to evaluate the Santagiulia ice was a segment of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being set up inside a giant exhibition hall on Milan’s outskirts and will host lesser games during the Olympics.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are tested at least the prior year to hosting podium competitions. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not only about the playing surface and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and safe. It’s additionally about checking food outlets, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new contemporary arena.

This new facility, which is being built by a private company, is scheduled to become the nation's largest covered stadium. For after the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Tour Finals tennis event.

In spite of the postponements and worries, expensive passes are already being purchased for events at the Santagiulia arena. Seats 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 athletic competition at the Milano Cortina Games. Only passes for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

The return of NHL players at the Olympics was announced in February of last year, with the world’s top hockey organization allowing its players to compete in the Winter Games for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

The men’s Olympic hockey tournament is set to take place from 11-22 February. Women's tournament occurs from 5-19 February.