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Forget about thin ice. Currently, the surface isn't ready.

As NHL players preparing to return to the Olympics for the initial occasion in more than a decade, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the main test event for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia facility that was scheduled for December has been moved to a smaller venue – and that no additional trial has been scheduled yet.

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

“The timeline will be extremely tight to the start of the games, the timeline is highly compressed. However, we were aware,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.

The competition that was intended to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being established inside a massive convention center on the outskirts of Milan and will stage secondary matches during the Olympics.

Usually, new Olympic venues are tested at least the prior year to hosting medal events. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not only about the ice and ensuring that the rink is prepared and secure. It’s also about testing concession stands, restrooms and everything else inside a newly constructed modern arena.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a private company, is slated to become the nation's biggest indoor arena. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential future host of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.

In spite of the postponements and worries, expensive passes are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia arena. 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). This exceeds for any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Only tickets for the inaugural and final events are priced higher.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was revealed last February, with the premier hockey organization permitting its athletes to compete in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.

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