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Put aside poor conditions. 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 venue for the Milano Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Local organizers confirmed on Wednesday that the main test event for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia facility originally planned for December has been moved to a more compact venue – and that no new test event has been arranged yet.

The issue raises the prospect that there may 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 – one day before the inaugural event.

“The timeline will be very close to the beginning of the games, 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 playing surface was part of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being established inside a massive exhibition hall on Milan’s outskirts and will stage lesser games during the Olympics.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the year before to holding podium competitions. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not just about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and secure. It’s additionally about testing concession stands, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new contemporary arena.

This new facility, which is being constructed by a commercial firm, is slated to become Italy’s biggest indoor arena. For after the Olympics, it’s being considered as a possible upcoming venue of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.

Despite the postponements and worries, high-priced passes are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Seats for the men's championship game on 22 February – the final day of the games – are priced at as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). This exceeds the price of any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Only tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

The return of NHL stars at the Olympics was revealed in February of last year, with the world’s top hockey league allowing its players to compete in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.

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