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

With NHL athletes preparing to return to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in more than a decade, building work on the main hockey venue for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the main test event for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia arena that was scheduled for December has been moved to a more compact arena – and that no new test event has been arranged 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 opening ceremony.

“It’s going to be very close to the start of the Olympics, the schedule is highly compressed. But we knew that,” Milano Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said recently.

The event that was intended to test the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fiera hockey location, which is being established inside a massive exhibition hall on Milan’s outskirts and will host secondary matches during the games.

Usually, new Olympic venues are trialled at least the year before to holding medal events. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not only about the playing surface and ensuring that the rink is ready and safe. It’s also about testing food outlets, bathrooms and everything else inside a brand-new contemporary stadium.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a commercial firm, is slated to become the nation's largest indoor arena. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a possible future host of the ATP Tour Finals tennis event.

Despite the delays and concerns, high-priced tickets are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Tickets for the men's championship game on 22 February – the final day of the games – are going for as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). That’s more than for any other athletic competition at the Milano Cortina Games. Solely passes for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was announced last February, 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 set to take place from 11-22 February. Women's tournament runs from 5-19 February.