Milano Ice Hockey Arena Delays Could Leave NHL Stars on Untested Ice

Forget about poor conditions. For now, there’s no ice.

With NHL athletes preparing to return to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in more than a ten years, construction on the primary hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is cutting it close.

Local organizers announced on Wednesday that the main trial competition for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia facility that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a more compact venue – and that no additional trial has been scheduled yet.

This situation creates the possibility 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 – 24 hours before the inaugural event.

“It’s going to be extremely tight to the start of the Olympics, the timeline is highly compressed. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The event that was supposed to test the Santagiulia playing surface was a segment of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been transferred to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being established inside a giant exhibition hall on the outskirts of Milan and will stage secondary matches during the Olympics.

Usually, freshly built Olympic facilities are tested at least the year before to holding medal events. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not only about the ice and making sure that the rink is prepared and safe. It’s additionally about testing concession stands, restrooms and all other amenities inside a newly constructed modern arena.

This new facility, which is being built by a private company, is slated to become the nation's biggest covered stadium. Following the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.

In spite of the postponements and concerns, high-priced passes are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia venue. Tickets for the men's championship game on 22 February – the closing day of the games – 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. Solely passes for the inaugural and final events cost more.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was revealed last February, with the premier hockey league allowing its players to compete in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.

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