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Put aside poor conditions. For now, there’s no ice.

With NHL players preparing to make a comeback to the Olympics for the first time in more than a ten years, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

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

The issue raises the prospect that there might not be a game held in the main arena until the competition begins for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – 24 hours before the inaugural event.

“It’s going to be very close to the start of the Olympics, the timeline is highly compressed. However, we were aware,” Milano Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.

The competition that was supposed to test the Santagiulia ice was part of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been transferred to the Rho Fair hockey venue, which is being established inside a massive convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will host lesser games during the games.

Typically, new Olympic venues are trialled at least the year before to hosting podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not just about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and secure. It’s also about checking concession stands, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a newly constructed contemporary arena.

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

Despite the postponements and concerns, expensive passes are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia venue. Tickets for the men's championship final on 22 February – the closing day of the games – are going for as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). This exceeds for any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Solely tickets for the inaugural and final events are priced higher.

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

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