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Put aside thin ice. For now, there’s no ice.

As NHL players preparing to make a comeback to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in over a ten years, building work on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the primary trial competition for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia facility originally planned for December has been moved to a more compact arena – and that no additional trial has been scheduled yet.

This situation raises the prospect that there might not be a game held in the main arena until the competition begins for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – 24 hours before the inaugural event.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the start of the Olympics, the timeline is very tight. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier said recently.

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

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are tested at least the prior year to hosting podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not only about the playing surface and ensuring that the rink is prepared and safe. It’s also about checking food outlets, restrooms and everything else inside a brand-new contemporary arena.

This new facility, which is being built by a commercial firm, is scheduled to become the nation's largest indoor arena. For after the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.

Despite the delays and worries, high-priced tickets 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 going for 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 tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies cost more.

The comeback of NHL players at the Olympics was announced last February, with the premier hockey league allowing its players to compete in the Winter Games for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

Men's Olympic hockey competition is scheduled to take place from 11-22 February. Women's tournament runs from 5-19 February.