Milan Ice Hockey Arena Delays May Force NHL Players on Unproven Playing Surface
Put aside poor conditions. For now, there’s no ice.
As NHL players preparing to make a comeback to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in over a decade, building work on the main hockey venue for the Milan-Cortina Games is going down to the wire.
Officials 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 scheduled yet.
The issue raises the prospect that there may not be a match held in the main arena until the competition begins for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.
“It’s going to be very close to the beginning of the Olympics, the schedule is very tight. But we knew that,” Milano Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.
The event that was intended to test the Santagiulia ice was a segment of the U20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fiera hockey location, which is being established inside a giant exhibition hall on the outskirts of Milan and will stage secondary matches during the games.
Typically, new Olympic venues are tested at least the year before to hosting podium competitions. And with a large hockey arena, it’s not just about the playing surface and making sure that the playing surface is prepared and safe. It’s also about checking concession stands, restrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new modern stadium.
This new facility, which is being built by a private company, is slated to become Italy’s biggest covered stadium. For after the Olympics, it’s being eyed as a possible upcoming venue of the ATP Tour Finals tennis event.
Despite the delays and concerns, expensive passes are already being purchased for matches at the Santagiulia arena. Seats for the men’s gold medal final on 22 February – the final day of the games – are going for as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). This exceeds the price of any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Only passes for the inaugural and final events cost more.
The comeback of NHL players at the Olympics was announced in February of last year, with the world’s top hockey league allowing its players to compete in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.
Men's Olympic hockey tournament is scheduled to take place from 11-22 February. The women’s tournament runs from 5-19 February.