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Put aside poor conditions. For now, the surface isn't ready.

With NHL players gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in more than a ten years, construction on the primary hockey venue for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Local organizers confirmed on Wednesday that the main test event for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia facility originally planned for December has been moved 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 primary venue until the competition begins for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – 24 hours before the inaugural event.

“It’s going to be very close to the start of the games, the schedule is highly compressed. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier said recently.

The competition that was intended to test the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being set up inside a giant exhibition hall on the outskirts of Milan and will stage secondary matches during the Olympics.

Usually, new Olympic venues are tested at least the year before to holding medal events. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not just about the playing surface and making sure that the rink is ready and secure. It’s additionally about checking concession stands, restrooms and everything else inside a brand-new contemporary arena.

This new facility, which is being constructed by a commercial firm, is scheduled to become the nation's biggest indoor arena. For after the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential future host of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.

In spite of the postponements and concerns, high-priced tickets are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia arena. Seats for the men’s gold medal final on 22 February – the closing day of the games – are going for as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). This exceeds the price of any other athletic competition at the Milano Cortina Games. Only tickets for the inaugural and final events cost more.

The return of NHL players at the Olympics was announced in February of last year, with the premier hockey league allowing its players to participate in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.

The men’s Olympic hockey tournament is set to run from 11-22 February. The women’s event occurs from 5-19 February.