Agreed, however the wave started at a decent amplitude therefore should have some effects in phase 8, albeit weakened.
Phase one, which includes the Western Indian Ocean, should not be affected as it wasn't in December. All the focus has been on the waters around Indonesia in Northern Australia however not enough attention has been paid to the Western Indian Ocean which is also increasing in temperature fast. Phases one and two are colder phases.
There have been a number of late seasons snowfalls in La Nina's over the years, excluding epic snowy winters like 95/96. I wonder if anybody has done a deep dive into the trigger mechanisms for the late season snowfalls in those La Nina's, which could perhaps provide insight into the potential moving forward.
Don's statistics show, from a snowfall perspective at a point in time, which of course do include both La niñas and El ninos. However with the changing weather over the years what may have been detrimental to late season snowfalls in the past may actually work in our favor now or in the future (i.e. warmer western Indian Ocean temps).