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Forget about thin ice. For now, there’s no ice.

As NHL athletes preparing to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in over a ten years, construction on the main hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the primary trial competition for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia arena that was scheduled for December has been moved to a smaller venue – and that no new test event has been scheduled yet.

The issue raises the prospect that there may not be a game held in the primary venue until the puck is dropped for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – 24 hours before the opening ceremony.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the beginning of the Olympics, the timeline is very tight. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier said recently.

The event that was intended to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being established inside a giant exhibition hall on the outskirts of Milan and will stage lesser games during the Olympics.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the prior year to hosting podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not only about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and secure. It’s additionally about testing food outlets, bathrooms and everything else inside a brand-new contemporary stadium.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being constructed by a commercial firm, is slated to become Italy’s largest covered stadium. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a possible future host of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.

In spite of the delays and worries, high-priced tickets are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Tickets for the men's championship game on 22 February – the final day of the Olympics – are priced at as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). That’s more than for any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Only tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

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

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