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Forget about thin ice. Currently, there’s no ice.

With NHL players gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in more than a decade, building work on the main hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia facility originally planned for December has been moved to a smaller arena – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

This situation creates the possibility that there might not be a game held in the primary venue until the puck is dropped for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.

“The timeline will be very close to the beginning of the Olympics, the timeline is very tight. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.

The event that was supposed to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being established inside a giant exhibition hall on the outskirts of Milan and will host secondary matches during the games.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are tested at least the year before to hosting medal events. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not only about the ice and making sure that the playing surface is ready and secure. It’s also about checking food outlets, restrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new modern arena.

This new facility, which is being built by a private company, is slated to become Italy’s largest indoor arena. 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, expensive passes are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia venue. Tickets for the men’s gold medal game on 22 February – the closing day of the Olympics – are going for as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). That’s more than for any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Solely tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

The return of NHL players at the Olympics was revealed in February of last year, with the premier hockey organization permitting its players to compete in the Winter Games for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

Men's Olympic hockey competition is set to run from 11-22 February. The women’s event occurs from 5-19 February.