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Put aside thin ice. Currently, there’s no ice.

As NHL athletes gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympics for the first time in more than a decade, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Local organizers announced on Wednesday that the primary test event for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia arena originally planned for December has been relocated to a smaller arena – and that no new test event has been scheduled yet.

This situation creates the possibility that there may not be a match 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.

“It’s going to be very close to the start of the Olympics, the schedule is highly compressed. However, we were aware,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The competition that was intended to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. This tournament has been transferred to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being established inside a giant convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will stage 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 playing surface and ensuring that the rink is prepared and secure. It’s additionally about testing food outlets, bathrooms and everything else inside a brand-new modern stadium.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being constructed by a private company, is slated to become Italy’s biggest covered stadium. For after the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Finals tennis event.

In spite of the postponements and worries, expensive passes are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Tickets for the men’s gold medal final on 22 February – the final 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 Milan-Cortina Games. Only tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies cost more.

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

The men’s Olympic hockey competition is set to take place from 11-22 February. The women’s event runs from 5-19 February.