They released a ton of promotional videos for it on the new case design, the new IPS displays, the i5 and i7 CPUs in the 27" models, etc etc. It was a major refresh for the whole line, it didn't just slip on through.
obviously...silent as in no keynote or presentation. Obviously they're going to market new products regardless. This in context of the next MBP refresh, where the next scheduled Apple event is WWDC and whether or not they'll wait until then to refresh.