As we told you previously, it did look like the bell had tolled for the NHL 2K11 release, as the game didn’t show up on the most recent title announcements from Take-Two. It appears now that the 2K Sports NHL offering will take a year off to allow a longer development cycle for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and will return with a 2K12 offering next year.

The bigger surprise is that the Nintendo Wii will get a NHL 2K11 release despite the fact that the game is taking the year off on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 platforms.

According to reports, the reason for the company to continue with a Wii-only offering this year is that the title had gained significant momentum among Canadian players with last release. This is understandable, since it is the only hockey title available for the Wii platform and our sources suggest that the 2K10 release on the Wii was heavily promoted with TV commercials during hockey games in Canada this season.

The best news is that Take-Two remains committed to the NHL 2K franchise and hopes to come back much stronger with their NHL 2K12 effort for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 next year.

It would appear that the decision will put Electronic Arts in the driver’s seat again this year with their NHL 2011 offering for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, which is really no surprise, as they have been there all along and it is going to take a lot of improvement for NHL 2K12 to gain a foothold.