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Put aside thin ice. Currently, the surface isn't ready.

With NHL athletes preparing to return to the Olympic Games for the first time in more than a ten years, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia facility that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a smaller venue – and that no new test event has been arranged yet.

The issue creates the possibility that there may not be a match held in the primary venue until the competition begins for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the inaugural event.

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

The event that was supposed to test the Santagiulia ice was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being set up inside a massive exhibition hall on Milan’s outskirts and will host lesser games during the games.

Typically, new Olympic venues are trialled at least the prior year to holding podium competitions. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not only about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and safe. It’s also about checking food outlets, restrooms and everything else inside a brand-new contemporary arena.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a commercial firm, is slated to become the nation's largest indoor arena. For after the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a possible future host of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.

Despite the delays and concerns, expensive passes are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia venue. Seats for the men's championship final on 22 February – the final day of the games – are priced at as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). That’s more than the price of any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Solely passes for the inaugural and final events cost more.

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

The men’s Olympic hockey competition is set to run from 11-22 February. Women's event runs from 5-19 February.