[mst]

Well we will have to wait and see ... however, I have never before seen a manufacturer quote prices in this fashion .... poorly worded ?

The wording comes from a rumor site, not the manufacturer. For the high-end lenses, both from Canon and Nikon, the lenses always came with hoods, caps, straps and all the other accessories, but hoods also always have been available as spare parts (which makes sense, since these lenses often see some heavy duty use in sports arenas or conflict areas).

The Nikon AF-S 120-300/2.8 is currently listed for $9496 at B&H, so the rumored price for the Canon is in line with the competition (still way too high, IMO) and a replacement hood (HK-41) for the Nikkor currently costs $579 at B&H. Those carbon fiber hoods always have been quite expensive.