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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 initial occasion in over a decade, building work on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Officials announced on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia arena originally planned for December has been moved to a smaller venue – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

The issue raises the prospect that there may not be a game held in the main arena until the puck is dropped for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – 24 hours before the opening ceremony.

“It’s going to be very close to the start of the games, the timeline is very tight. However, we were aware,” Milano Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The event that was intended to test the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey venue, which is being set up inside a giant convention center on the outskirts of Milan and will stage lesser games during the Olympics.

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

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a commercial firm, is scheduled to become Italy’s largest indoor arena. For after the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a possible upcoming venue of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.

In spite of the postponements and worries, expensive tickets are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Seats for the men’s gold medal game on 22 February – the closing day of the games – are going for as much as €1,400 (over $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 organization permitting its players to compete in the Winter Games for the first time 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.