If a model comes along with low frequency variability that is less polar concentrated and fits the century, or half - century, trend pattern better, that would be news. (gfdl.noaa.gov)
DelSole et al 2011 provide a convenient figure (top of post) summarizing the spatial structure of low frequency variability of sea surface temperature in an ensemble of GCMs. (gfdl.noaa.gov)
I'll write about the structure and amplitude of low frequency variability in models in another post, as promised above. (gfdl.noaa.gov)