Sunday marked end of 2014 Atlantic Hurricane Season

Sunday marked the official end of the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season. Though tropical cyclones have developed in December, as was the case with a subtropical storm last season, for all intents and purposes, the season is over.

So as sports fans might do at the end of their favorite team's season, it's time to assess the season as a whole and also look forward to next year.

First, a review of what happened this year: The basin featured eight tropical cyclones, though the intensity of the storms that did form was much higher on average than it was in 2013, when the basin only saw two of 14 classified storms develop into hurricanes. Of the eight tropical storms that developed, six became hurricanes with two, Edouard and Gonzalo, becoming major hurricanes.

Florida's streak without a land-falling hurricane continued, as the state stands at more than nine years (or more than 3,300 days) without experiencing the direct impact of a tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 74 mph or higher. Though the state felt some effects from Tropical Storm Arthur as it first developed, Florida was never seriously threatened this season.

William Gray, renowned hurricane forecaster, along with Phillip Klotzbach at Colorado State said in their initial forecast for the 2014 season that there would be nine named storms, three hurricanes and one major hurricane in the basin.

They were essentially right. In their forecast, part of their reasoning involved increased wind shear in the Atlantic basin, and that's what hampered development in many cases.

It was still a memorable season for some, particularly the people of Bermuda, who won't soon forget the direct hit they took from Hurricane Gonzalo. It approached as a major hurricane and passed over the island as a strong Category 2.

And though the Outer Banks of North Carolina are no strangers to hurricanes, Arthur will be remembered there after it moved through the area in early July with maximum sustained winds of near 100 mph.

So what's in store for 2015?

A lot depends on whether El Niño is still in play in the Pacific basin. If it is, we could see another quiet season. If not, it's possible that more favorable conditions will lead to more development.

It's too soon to tell how that will play out, but forecasters should have a better handle on it by the spring.

Bonanno graduated from Florida Tech with a degree in environmental science with meteorology option. Contact him at cbonanno@floridatoday.com or follow him on Twitter @FTchrisbonanno.