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Forget about poor conditions. Currently, there’s no ice.

As NHL players preparing to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in more than a ten years, construction on the main hockey venue 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 relocated to a smaller arena – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

The issue creates the possibility that there might not be a match 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.

“The timeline will be extremely tight to the beginning of the games, the timeline is highly compressed. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The event that was supposed to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being established inside a massive exhibition hall on Milan’s outskirts and will stage secondary matches during the Olympics.

Typically, new Olympic venues are tested at least the prior year to holding medal events. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not only about the ice and ensuring that the rink is ready and secure. It’s also about testing food outlets, restrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new contemporary arena.

This new facility, which is being constructed by a private company, is scheduled to become Italy’s biggest covered stadium. For after the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Finals tennis event.

In spite of the postponements and worries, high-priced passes are already being purchased for events at the Santagiulia arena. Tickets for the men’s gold medal final on 22 February – the final day of the games – are going for as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). That’s more than for any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely passes for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

The return of NHL players at the Olympics was announced last February, with the world’s top hockey organization allowing its athletes to participate in the Winter Games 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.