They also specifically said this conference is about 3DS and Wii, not Wii U.
You're right, safe was probably a poor choice of words... Reasonable is what I really meant-- and I still stand by that. I'm thinking all the software announcements will be focused on DS, 3DS, and Wii, but Wii U's will get a brief announcement of its price and launch date.
You'd have a valid point
if they straight out specified no Wii U news, but they didn't do that-- they just conveniently left it unmentioned.
Like I said, I'm expecting new software reveals to only be for DS, 3DS, and Wii-- it definitely won't be Wii U-focused, but it doesn't mean it won't be mentioned.
If all they were planning to do was just slyly mention the Wii U price and date (which is especially likely if the final price $300+) while keeping the rest of the show exclusive to the current systems, leaving Wii U unmentioned is
precisely how I'd expect them to announce it-- otherwise this would specifically be seen as a show about Wii U's announcement, which they'd want to avoid if they're aiming to downplay it (let's not forget that at 12:00am EST this ND is notably later most anyway).
I don't blame you for being skeptical to avoid getting your hopes up if ends up not being revealed, but the facts remain that a Wii U price announcement
is more than reasonable to expect.