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Put aside thin ice. Currently, the surface isn't ready.

As NHL athletes gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympics for the first time in more than a decade, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia arena that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a smaller venue – and that no new test event has been arranged yet.

The issue creates the possibility that there might not be a game 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 very close to the start of the Olympics, the schedule is very tight. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee 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. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being set up inside a massive convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will stage secondary matches during the games.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the year before to holding podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not only about the playing surface and ensuring that the playing surface is ready and safe. It’s additionally about testing concession stands, 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 covered stadium. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a possible upcoming venue of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.

Despite the delays and worries, high-priced passes are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia arena. Tickets for the men’s gold medal game on 22 February – the closing day of the games – are priced at as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). That’s more than for any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely passes for the inaugural and final events are priced higher.

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

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