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Put aside poor conditions. Currently, there’s no ice.

As NHL players preparing to return to the Olympics for the first time in over a ten years, building work on the main hockey venue for the Milano 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 smaller arena – 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 primary venue until the competition begins for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the inaugural event.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the beginning of the Olympics, the schedule is highly compressed. However, we were aware,” Milano Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The competition that was supposed to evaluate the Santagiulia ice was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey venue, which is being set up inside a massive convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will stage secondary matches during the games.

Usually, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the year before to hosting podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey venue, it’s not just about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and safe. It’s also about checking concession stands, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a newly constructed modern stadium.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a commercial firm, is scheduled to become Italy’s largest indoor arena. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential future host of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.

Despite the postponements and concerns, expensive passes are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia arena. 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). That’s more than for any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Only passes for the opening and closing ceremonies cost more.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was revealed in February of last year, with the world’s top hockey organization allowing its players to compete in the Winter Olympics for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

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