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Put aside poor conditions. Currently, the surface isn't ready.

With NHL players gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in more than a decade, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Local organizers announced on Wednesday that the main trial competition for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia arena originally planned for December has been moved to a more compact venue – and that no additional trial has been scheduled yet.

This situation creates the possibility that there might 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 inaugural event.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the beginning of the Olympics, the timeline is highly compressed. However, we were aware,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.

The event that was intended to test the Santagiulia ice was part of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event 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 lesser games during the games.

Usually, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the prior year to hosting podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not only about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and secure. It’s additionally about checking food outlets, bathrooms and everything else inside a brand-new contemporary arena.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a commercial firm, 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 tickets are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia venue. Seats for the men's championship final on 22 February – the closing day of the Olympics – are priced at as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). This exceeds the price of any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely passes for the inaugural and final events cost more.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was revealed in February of last year, with the premier hockey league permitting its players to participate in the Winter Olympics for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

The men’s Olympic hockey competition is scheduled to run from 11-22 February. Women's tournament runs from 5-19 February.