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Forget about poor conditions. For now, the surface isn't ready.

With NHL athletes gearing up to return to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in more than a ten years, building work on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia facility originally planned for December has been relocated to a more compact arena – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

This situation raises the prospect that there may not be a game held in the main arena until the competition begins for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.

“The timeline will be extremely tight to the beginning of the Olympics, the timeline is highly compressed. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier said recently.

The event that was intended to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being established inside a massive convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will host lesser games during the Olympics.

Usually, new Olympic venues are tested at least the year before to hosting podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not just about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and secure. It’s additionally about checking food outlets, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new modern arena.

This new facility, which is being built by a private company, is slated to become Italy’s largest indoor arena. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Tour Finals tennis event.

In spite of the postponements and worries, expensive 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 Olympics – are going for as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). This exceeds for any other sports event 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 revealed in February of last year, with the premier hockey organization permitting its players to participate in the Winter Games for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.

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