http://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2011/3/8/2035983/nhl-television-contract-negotiation-espn-versus The article lists FX and Turner Sports as being possible suitors for TV rights as well.
I was very worried when the switch to Versus happened, I figured it would be a big disaster. In some ways the 'footprint' of hockey has gone down, in another, I'll give Versus a lot of credit, they put a lot of effort and exposure into this and it shows. The game on VS is far better than ESPN2 ever had. I don't know what'll happen, I know some people want to go back to ESPN but sometimes its better to a big fish in a small pond.