Milan Ice Hockey Arena Setbacks Could Leave NHL Stars on Unproven Playing Surface

Forget about thin ice. Currently, there’s no ice.

With NHL athletes gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in over a ten years, building work on the primary hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Officials confirmed on Wednesday that the primary trial competition for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia arena that was scheduled for December has been moved to a smaller arena – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

The issue raises the prospect that there may not be a game held in the primary venue until the puck is dropped for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – 24 hours before the inaugural event.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the beginning of the games, the schedule is very tight. However, we were aware,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The competition that was supposed to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey venue, which is being set up inside a massive convention center on the outskirts of Milan and will host secondary matches during the games.

Typically, freshly built Olympic facilities are tested at least the prior year to holding medal events. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not just about the ice and making sure that the rink is ready and safe. It’s also about checking concession stands, restrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new contemporary stadium.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a private company, is slated to become Italy’s largest covered stadium. For after the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a possible future host of the ATP Tour Finals tennis event.

Despite the delays and concerns, high-priced tickets are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Seats for the men's championship final on 22 February – the final day of the Olympics – are priced at as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). This exceeds the price of any other athletic competition at the Milano Cortina Games. Solely tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies cost more.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was announced in February of last year, with the premier hockey organization allowing its players to compete in the Winter Games for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.

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