Milan Ice Hockey Arena Delays May Leave NHL Players on Unproven Ice

Forget about thin ice. Currently, the surface isn't ready.

As NHL players preparing to return to the Olympic Games for the first time in more than a ten years, construction on the primary hockey venue for the Milano Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Officials announced on Wednesday that the primary trial competition for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia arena originally planned for December has been relocated to a smaller venue – and that no additional trial has been scheduled yet.

The issue creates the possibility that there may 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 – one day before the inaugural event.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the start of the Olympics, the schedule is very tight. But we knew that,” Milano Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier stated in a recent update.

The event that was supposed 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 established inside a massive convention center on the outskirts of Milan and will stage lesser games during the Olympics.

Usually, freshly built Olympic facilities are tested at least the year before to hosting medal events. And with a sizable hockey venue, it’s not just about the playing surface and making sure that the playing surface is ready and safe. It’s also about checking concession stands, restrooms and everything else inside a newly constructed contemporary arena.

This new facility, which is being constructed by a commercial firm, is scheduled to become Italy’s biggest covered stadium. For after the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a possible upcoming venue of the ATP Finals tennis event.

Despite the postponements and worries, expensive tickets are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia arena. Tickets for the men's championship game on 22 February – the closing day of the Olympics – are priced at as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). This exceeds for any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Only tickets for the inaugural and final events are priced higher.

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

Men's Olympic hockey competition is scheduled to take place from 11-22 February. The women’s event occurs from 5-19 February.