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Forget about thin ice. Currently, there’s no ice.

As NHL athletes gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympics for the first time in over a decade, construction on the primary hockey venue for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the main trial competition for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia facility originally planned 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 main arena until the competition begins for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.

“The timeline will be extremely tight to the beginning of the Olympics, the schedule is very tight. However, we were aware,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said recently.

The competition that was intended to test the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fiera hockey location, which is being established inside a giant convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will stage secondary matches during the games.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the year before to holding podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not only about the playing surface and making sure that the rink 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 the nation's biggest indoor arena. Following the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a possible future host of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.

Despite the delays and worries, high-priced passes are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Seats for the men’s gold medal game on 22 February – the closing day of the Olympics – are going for as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). That’s more than for any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely passes 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 world’s top hockey organization allowing its players to compete in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.

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