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Forget about poor conditions. For now, there’s no ice.

With NHL athletes preparing to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in more than a ten years, construction on the main hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Local organizers announced on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia arena that was scheduled for December has been moved to a smaller venue – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

This situation raises the prospect that there may not be a match held in the primary venue until the competition begins for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the inaugural event.

“The timeline will be very close to the beginning of the Olympics, the timeline is very tight. However, we were aware,” Milano Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The event that was intended to evaluate the Santagiulia ice was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fiera hockey location, which is being set up inside a massive convention center on the outskirts of Milan and will stage lesser games during the games.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the prior year to holding podium competitions. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not just about the playing surface and making sure that the playing surface is prepared and safe. It’s also about testing food outlets, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a newly constructed contemporary arena.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a private company, is scheduled to become Italy’s biggest indoor arena. Following the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Finals tennis event.

Despite the delays and concerns, high-priced tickets are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia arena. Tickets for the men's championship game on 22 February – the closing day of the Olympics – are going for as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). This exceeds 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 stars at the Olympics was revealed last February, with the world’s top hockey league permitting its athletes to compete in the Winter Olympics for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

Men's Olympic hockey competition is set to run from 11-22 February. Women's tournament occurs from 5-19 February.