In modern times a cutoff trough doesn't necessarily mean colder than average, but it usually means boring with no good ring-of-fire pattern ever setting up. Just seems like a lot of the good t-storm season has been wasted with blocky patterns this year. Last year was decent in May, July, and then again September, but I remember 2018 being boring for almost the entire summer... until late August. 2018 was warm but had a lot of cutoffs/blocks and was quite boring.